Shelter
by XxWhispxX
Summary: One family trip gone wrong made Maisie Kennan grow up in a matter of days and lose everyone she loved. Belonging to neither humans nor vampires, she drifts between the city and the outside world, rescuing humans in exchange for blood in secrecy. But what happens when Maisie is slowly being dragged into the conflict between humans and vampires by force?
1. Chapter 1

_Prologue_

 _It was just a vacation. A trip away from home. You would think a little vacation was harmless, but knowing my luck, even back then, our family vacation to Japan had to happen on the day of the apocalypse._

 **DECEMBER YEAR 20XX (EIGHT YEARS PRIOR)**

The air was crisp as crowds of people walked around the plaza like a school of fish. Away from the crowds, in a plain hotel room, was a family of four. The family consisted of a mother, father, a baby and a little girl who was currently at the window of their hotel room, staring at the view from five stories up. The little nine-year-old girl had short, curly dirty blonde hair that was just above her shoulders. Her hazel eyes widened in awe as she pointed out an airplane flying in the distance.

"Mommy! Look, there's an airplane!" The girl smiled as she turned her head to look at her mother.

Her mother was a woman in her early 30's with blonde hair in a pixie cut and vibrant green eyes. She was holding a baby with fluffy brown hair in a similar style. The baby yawned and opened her pale green eyes.

"There must be an airport nearby, Maisie" Her mother explained as she rocked the baby in her arms. "You woke up Hannah"

The little girl, Maisie, walked over to the baby and smiled. "I'm sorry, Hannah" She apologized.

"I'm sure you didn't mean it, Maisie" A new voice spoke up. The bathroom door opened to reveal a man with cropped blonde hair in his mid 30's. He walked over to Maisie and ruffled her hair. "It is your first time in Japan"

"That's not true, Thomas" Her mother spoke up. "She came here when she was a baby"

"That doesn't count!"

"Yes, it does!"

"Not if she can't remember!"

"She was still here"

"Aki" Thomas sighed as he laughed at their pointless banter. Maisie's mother, Aki, laughed. Just as Maisie opened her mouth to laugh, a large crash was heard and the ground shook. Maisie ran to the window and saw the plane she had seen before had crashed into the ground, causing nearby cars and trucks to explode.

"Maisie get-" Her father shouted before he gripped his chest and fell to the ground. Her mother dropped her baby onto the bed before collapsing on the ground with blood running down her mouth.

Maisie froze as she heard an announcement on the hotel speakers and outside.

" _Your attention, please. A deadly virus has been released to punish humanity for it's foolishness-"_

Maisie's attention was stolen as she heard the window from the room next to her's shatter. Maisie, without thinking, grabbed her sister and gently pushed her under the hotel bed. Hannah started crying so Maisie quickly grabbed her baby blanket and wrapped it around the infant, hoping the baby would stop. Hannah stopped crying and snuggled the blanket, lulling herself to sleep. Relieved, Maisie crawled out from under the bed and scanned the room for a place to hide. Before she could act, the large window in her hotel room crashed and Maisie was sent to the ground. A trio of hooded men and one man were standing in front of her. The man was tall and had long light purple hair tied back with bangs, his eyes complimented his hair as they were red slits. The men behind him had similar hoods on so Maisie couldn't see much other than their shoes.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" The purple haired man said with a smirk, gesturing broadly. Maisie froze on the spot. The man walked forward and put a hand under her chin, lifting her head. "Such interesting coloring. Obviously foreign" Using his other hand, he stroked Maisie's hair. "Perhaps I should keep this one as a pet, such coloring is rare here in Japan"

Maisie didn't know what possessed her, but at that moment she bit the hand that had been holding her chin. The man snapped as he felt his skin break and Maisie tasted a mix of blood and vinegar. He threw Maisie with such force that she crashed against the hotel door with a smack. When she hit the door, Maisie swore she heard her bones snap as she felt blood flowing from the back of her head. Slumping against the door, Maisie felt the blood from the man's hand slowly trickle down her throat as her eyes closed. Maisie felt paralyzed, but she could still hear. Her little body was attacked with pain like she had been ripped apart and put back together poorly.

"Damn, that hurt" The man complained. "Now the livestock is dead. Let's move on before any other cattle decides to bite"

"Should we inform Krul?" one of the hooded men asked.

"No, i would prefer not. She would say I wasted valuable food." The man sighed. "Let's go"

Once the men left, Maisie sat there, trying to ignore the pain. Soon, her sister had woken up and began crying. Maisie longed to hug her sister and comfort the crying baby, but her paralyzed body refused and all she could do is sit there as her baby sister cried all night long while her parents lied feet away, dead and cold to the touch. The next morning, Hannah was still crying. Maisie felt her body be knocked forward as someone opened the door. Maisie's body screamed in agony but she couldn't say anything. Her eyes blurred as a man entered the room wearing dark clothing. The man looked under the bed and picked up a crying Hannah, still clinging to her handmade baby blanket. Maisie felt her heart skip a beat as anger boiled inside of her.

 _No… Let her go! Put her down!_

"Sir! I found one!" The man called as he rocked the baby in his arms. A trio of men wearing a similar outfit entered the room, grouping around the man.

 _No! Stay away from my sister!_

"How did it survive? The parents must have been dead before they could hide it" One of the men stated. One man looked at the paralyzed Maisie, who was now on the ground. From the man's point of view, Maisie was covered in blood, pale and still, with blank eyes.

"That's how" The man looking at her spoke up. All the men turned to Maisie as realization filled their eyes. "She must have hid the baby before she was killed"

"Let's search the parent's phones and see if we can get an idea of age and who that"- referring to Maisie- "is before we go any further" One of the men ordered. Two of the men began searching through her parent's phones once they were found.

"The blanket says the baby's name" The man holding Hannah stated. The baby blanket was a soft, pastel purple in color with floral fabric on the perimeter. On the lower left corner, the name "Hannah" with a butterfly was stitched in baby pink thread.

"Good work, Hisashi" One of the men said as he continued to search the room.

"I found something!" One of the men with her father's phone said as he showed the other men. "This picture was taken on November 18th of last year"

 _Hannah's birthday_

Maisie knew the picture he was referring to; the picture taken the day Hannah was born.

"That girl is also in the photo. We can confidently say they were siblings"

"So she died to protect her baby sister…" Hisashi frowned. "She's the reason her sister's still alive"

"We better get back to base. There's no use staying here and the baby probably needs food and water"

 _No! Don't take her!_ Maisie wanted to shout. The men walked out of the room, leaving Maisie all alone. _DON'T TAKE HER! I'M NOT DEAD! I'M ALIVE!_

As night fell, Maisie could no longer feel any pain, as she was numb after her sister was taken. Her mouth tasted like blood as she felt herself lose consciousness. With one final gulp, Maisie felt like her time had run out. Suddenly, the sensation of her bones snapping together filled her body. Maisie heard herself scream for the first time since she had been thrown against that door. The wound in the back of her head felt like it was being pulled together by force. When the sudden pain stopped, Maisie felt her whole body throb with a painful thirst as she rose to her feet. Tears fell from Maisie's eyes.

"Why now… Where's my sister…" Maisie cried as she walked her way out of the hotel, step by step. Maisie's thirst grew as she saw all the bloodied bodies around her. Her head began to pound uncontrollably.

"I have to find someone alive" She muttered as she brushed the headache off and began running. The world outside was in ashes as burned bodies and wreckage from the fallen plane had littered the area, the smell of death still hanging in the air. Most buildings were still standing, but the crumbled building were hanging by a thread. As she ran, searching for someone alive, she was stopped as a stray dog ran up and grabbed her leg, puncturing her skin. Maisie screamed and hit the dog on the head as hard as she could. When her hand hit the dog, a loud crack was heard and the dog went limp. Maisie felt a strange pulling sensation and noticed the puncture wounds were gone. She looked at the dog, noticing a red pool around it's head. Seeing the red pool made Maisie's instincts turn against her as her eyes dilated and her teeth sunk into the dog's skin, draining it of blood til it was dry.

Her hunger was quenched after a while of draining the dog, but she still felt weak. When the girl realized what she had done, she backed away from the crime scene and burst into tears. She cried yelling apologizes to the sky until the sunset. By then, she realized what she had become.

 **She was a monster**

 **PRESENT DAY**

The library air was occupied by a silence that would make a mute feel uncomfortable. Very few people were in the library; only the librarian, a few students in their school uniform, and a teenage girl standing by one of the shelves. The teenager was currently reading a book from the history portion of the library, taking in the peace and quiet. Her hair, dirty blonde in color, was tied back in a pony tail. She wore headphones, that had seen better days, which covered her ears. Her Hazel colored eyes were behind a pair of thin rimmed glasses that were held in place by her black and red headphones. Unlike the other teens in the library, she didn't wear a uniform. Her outfit consisted of a loose, off shoulder shirt, light maroon in color and jean shorts with a pair of blue sneakers. Her concentration was broken as loud laughing was heard at the entrance of the small room. A group of students had entered, obviously not smart enough to see it was a library. The girl thought it was weird for them to appear since most students spent their afternoons walking down what was left of the crumbled streets to their dorms. She resumed her reading but was quickly interrupted when her headphones were smacked off her head and fell to the ground. The girl was suddenly glad her hair had pooled over her ears, despite her best efforts to tie it back earlier that same day.

"Hey cutie" A male voice said with a seductive undertone. The girl felt something be pulled out of her back pocket as she bent down to pick up her headphones. When she looked at the boy behind her, he was holding her library card. "Melissa, huh? Do you come here often, Melissa?"

"Yes, I do" The girl, Melissa, answered with an annoyed sigh.

"How come I haven't seen you before?" The boy asked as his entourage joined behind him. Melissa blinked her eyes.

"Because you don't bother picking up a book with no pictures?" Melissa said with a blank stare.

The boy was taken aback by her response as she took back her library card. She heard someone behind the boy mutter "What a bitch", which earned them a chuckle.

"It takes one to know one, dumbass" Melissa smirked as she placed her book back on the shelf and walked away.

As she left the library, she could hear girls nearby gossiping.

"Do you remember when that vampire escaped?"

"Yeah! Everyone had to evacuate, it was crazy!"

"Stupid vampire looked like she belonged in a mental asylum"

"I heard a boy in our class actually fought it!"

"No way! You're lying!"

"Honest! He had a sword and everything!"

Melissa felt herself chuckle. _They wouldn't so cocky if the vampire had attacked them_

Melissa headed to the very edge of the city (Where the population stayed) towards the alleyway she used to get over the protective fencing used to keep humans in and vampires out. Walking behind a line of abandoned buildings, Melissa used the broken wall pieces on one of the crumbled buildings as if she were rock climbing. Once she got high enough, she took a deep breath as she jumped over the wall separating civilization from certain death. Melissa sighed as her feet touched the ground, her body unharmed. She continued walking, keeping a careful eye out for any creatures that dared to bother her, until she reached a mostly intact building covered with vegetation, only the door spared of the leafy vines. The building appeared as if it used to be a convenience store. Melissa walked into the building without much thought, as she had for the past six years. Inside were shelves that had been knocked over and moved to one side of the building. On the other side was a queen-sized mattress with some fluffy blankets next to a desk, where a cash register would've been. Near the mattress was a back room with a semi functional bathroom. Walking into this bathroom, Melissa began stripping her body of clothing (With all the vegetation covering the building, peeping toms were a scarce, if at all, problem) as she turned on the sink. Melissa had hooked up her water supply to the local stream back when she first found the building (Though for the life of her, she couldn't fix the lights or gas despite her research) allowing this to be possible. The bathroom was simply a small room with an open closet, toilet, sink, and drain in the floor. The tile had vegetation that Melissa had been too lazy to dispose at the moment.

After untying her hair, Melissa grabbed a bowl with a broken edge from the closet and filled it with water. Placing the bowl in the sink, Melissa focused on her eyes. She kept her eyes looking up as she pulled down her lower eye lid, pinching a plastic film and removing it from her eye. She repeated this with the other eye and dropped both films in the bowl of water. Looking at the films, she saw the familiar hazel color arranged in a circle with a clear dot in the middle; her colored contacts. Blinking her eyes, she looked at herself in the mirror. As her vision cleared, bright red colored eyes stared back at her, the same color as the vital liquid that kept her alive. Seeing the color made her stomach growl.

" **Time for dinner, Maisie"**


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter 2: A Resolution_

"I'm scared, mommy!" A little girl with brown hair cried as the roars from the outside world caused the little cave she was in to rumble.

...

Omotesando had been one of the first places to go during the vampire's take over. Especially the subway, which was now used as a cave for "livestock" (Any poor humans the vampires claimed as food). Maisie stuck her head out from behind the pillar she was using, hoping there were no Dracs (What Maisie called the vampires) nearby.

The area surrounding the Omotesando station was covered, floor to roof, in vegetation with rubble from nearby skyscrapers decorating the ground, untouched since the invasion. The entrance to the Omotesando subway was still standing strong and had less vegetation due to the lack of light. Crouched inside the entrance were people (most with dark hair and aging from 2-21) wearing the white "uniform" associated with the prisoners living under the Dracs. Maisie, who was wearing dark pants and a dark grey hoodie, didn't wear her colored contacts while she was hunting. This allowed her red eyes to pierce the darkness provided by the pillar she stood behind. She scanned the area and was relieved when she didn't see any of the monsters that usually plagued the area nearby.

 _Looks like it will be an easy hunting today_ Maisie thought with sigh. Unlike the vampires, she didn't have a name for the monsters up until a few years ago. She referred to them as "Scavengers" (At the time, the name made sense). The Scavengers were known for picking off any poor unfortunate souls that had escaped the Dracs. She knew about them because of how difficult they made hunting, attacking her and her prey wildly with no accuracy. Realizing the disappearance of the monsters, Maisie stopped hiding as she walked up to the subway entrance. Almost immediately, children began crying and adults growled as she approached. She stopped just a few inches from stepping into the cave as her red eyes scanned the room. The prisoners were already imagining what she would do, whether it is to take a poor soul to be drained or kill them all on the spot. Her next words may be the last words they ever hear.

" **How would you like to escape?"** Maisie asked gently, her eyes waiting for their confused expressions. Before she let the children get too excited, she added "I can only guarantee the safety of two children or one adult"

"How do we know you won't kill them?!" a woman yelled as she clutched her child to her chest.

"Do I look like I'm connected to the Dracs? I'm not one of them" Maisie sighed, gesturing to her clothing. The last group she conversed with wasn't this aggressive. "I'm offering you a choice. Either you agree to my bargain or I walk away with no argument. All I ask is for some blood"

The prisoners look concerned. "How do we know you won't suck us dry?" One man asked.

"If you're that concerned, find a bowl or something. Just make up your mind" Maisie sighed.

"You're that girl" one of the men said as his eyes widened. "You're the Blood Bird!"

 _Not again with that stupid nickname_ Maisie sighed as a vein popped out of her forehead. Taking a deep breath, she looked at the man and recognized him from the Nagoya station she had visited just two days before.

"What are you talking about?" One of the prisoners asked.

"The Blood Bird! She visits stations offering people freedom in exchange for blood. She's not a phony. I saw her at the Nagoya station!" The man felt relief flood through him. "She took two little boys to freedom!"

The man was speaking the truth. The group of prisoners at the Nagoya station had decided to trust her with twin boys around the age of 7. After skillfully avoiding some Scavengers, she had dropped both boys off at the entrance to the city, where they were quickly found and taken to the proper assistance. She had returned and gotten her blood, which was poured into a bowl due to the prisoner's fear of being sucked dry. Maisie accepted the blood with no complaints.

"Why should I trust her with my child?!" The woman from before cried out. "She could be killing them for all I know!"

The others seemed to agree as they all went silent. Maisie sighed. "I will not argue with you. If you refuse, then I will leave"

Just as she turned to leave, the man who called her "Blood Bird" yelled at the top of his lungs "Wait!". Maisie responded by shushing the man harshly. Noticing his volume, he whispered "Take me. I will give you my blood"

No one said anything for a moment until Maisie sighed and held out her hand. "Then hurry. I can't let the Dracs see me"

The man accepted her hand without a second thought. Just as he grabbed her hand, the cave shook as the roar of a Scavenger was steadily approaching. Maisie ran, dragging the man behind her as she ducked behind the pillar. Once behind the pillar, Maisie could see the Scavenger clear as day. It was the same Scavenger that she had seen during almost all of her hunting trips. She learned fairly quickly that while she could defend herself, she couldn't risk the life of the person behind her. The Scavenger had the appearance of a giant, white lobster with the lower half (colored dark teal with black accents) of a four legged spider with a long slithering tail. Its mouth, in the shape of a mermaid fin, was filled with teeth that would make the big bad wolf look like a puppy. The head of the scavenger reminded Maisie of a medieval knight with no face. As it approached, the ground trembled. Maisie looked for an exit, slowly realizing that all of her exits involved crossing paths with the scavenger.

 _Shit_

Maisie looked at her prey, seeing how his body was already shaking from the short run to their current hiding place. There was no way he could run close behind… and Maisie wasn't leaving him.

"Get on my back"

"W-what?" The man asked, still breathing heavily.

"Get on my back" Maisie repeated. "You're too weak. I will carry you" Noticing his worried expression, she sighed. "Stop worrying. I'm going to get you to civilization"

"Of course, Blood Bird" The man whispered as he walked over to her.

The man said nothing as he hoisted himself onto Maisie's back with his cheeks blushing. Maisie, being seventeen, could already see why this kind of scenario would embarrass him, or any boy for that matter. Considering how long she had been transporting prey, it no longer bothered her if the prey had to be carried or if they were annoying (Which, many of the children she transported, were). The nickname she had recently been given did frustrate her, but she mostly let it slide. It was safe to say Maisie preferred being called only two names; her nickname or her full name, the latter she hadn't used since she was living with her parents.

The Scavenger roared as it spotted the human on Maisie's back and began charging.

"Hang on!" Maisie snapped as she started running, the man piggy backing with his arms wrapped around her neck. Her speed beat the scavenger's, allowing her to run pass it with little trouble.

"Dammit! She got another one!" Maisie heard a voice growl. Looking behind at the tunnel behind her, she saw a group of vampires wearing their signature white hoods. One of the dracs had sunken their fangs into a young child as her mother screamed. Maisie turned her head and ran as fast as she could, hoping to drop her prey off at the city borders before the dracs caught up.

…

Maisie felt herself grow weak as the pair slowed down, not far from her hideout.

"Blood Bird?" The man on her back said in a whisper.

Maisie felt her patience running thin. "What's your name?" She asked suddenly. The man was taken aback, but answered regardless.

"Markus"

"Good, I'm Maisie. Now stop calling me the 'Blood Bird'" Maisie snapped. Her body was growing numb from all the hunger pangs she was experiencing.

"Y-yes Ms.-"

"IT'S MAISIE"

"Yes M-Maisie!"

Maisie knew she would just get worse if she continued on, so she changed direction to her hideout. The man, Markus, obviously had a problem with this.

"Uh, Maisie? Where are we going?" Markus asked with fear evident in his voice.

"Calm down. If I keep going like this, I'll be too weak to hold myself back. We're stopping for the night" Maisie snapped. Her feet went on until she reached her hideout, the familiar, plant-covered building giving her a sense of relief and vulnerability. As she stepped inside the building, she slowly set Markus down on his feet. Markus was on the edge as Maisie slipped off her grey hoodie and smoothed out her hair. She looked at him with her crimson eyes, causing his heart to drop to his feet.

"Do you want a bowl?" Maisie asked out of the blue. Markus looked at her, confusion clouding his mind.

"W-what?"

"For your blood. Would you prefer a bowl?" Maisie clarified.

"Do most people prefer t-that?" Markus asked with fear underlying his calm tone.

"Most of the time. Some are too squeamish to cut themselves to collect their blood, others are scared I'll drain them dry. It depends." Maisie explained.

"Have you ever, y-you know… Killed anyone?" Markus asked.

Maisie went silent for a moment. "I've killed a Drac, but never a person" Maisie suddenly clutched her stomach in pain. Markus jumped back, surprised.

"Are you okay?" Markus asked, feeling concerned cover up his fear.

"Hunger pains" Maisie said through gritted teeth.

Markus swallowed down his fear and made a decision. "Take it"

Maisie looked up "What?"

"T-take my blood, y-you saved me and this is my p-payment" Markus said, his voice shaking.

Maisie didn't think twice and she rose to her feet, approaching Markus. Markus felt his heart pounding in his chest, remembering the familiar piercing needles the vampires used on his neck. Markus, with hands trembling, pulled the right side of his shirt down, exposing his shoulder. Maisie got closer and Markus closed his eyes as he felt her breath on his bare shoulder. With one swift motion, Maisie's fangs pierced Markus's skin and began filling her mouth with the red liquid. Markus could feel his energy disappearing, but just as quickly as it began, it stopped. After a few minutes, Maisie pulled back, blood dripping down her chin. Maisie stepped back, wiping the blood away.

"Thank you" Maisie said as she felt her hunger pains disappeared almost instantly. She grabbed her hoodie and sat down, crisscross, on a random spot on the floor. "Use the mattress for the night. Tomorrow I'll drop you off."

Markus nodded as he looked at the two bleeding punctures on his shoulder. He didn't even as tired as he did when the vampires drained him. Maisie closed her eyes, her breathing evening out in her seated position. Markus followed her orders and lay on the mattress, allowing his guard to drop. He closed his eyes and felt himself have the most pleasant dream he had had in years.

…

Markus woke to the sound of a shower running as he lifted his head, sleep still blurring his vision. As his vision cleared, he realized where he was. Markus looked around for Maisie, wondering if she turned the water on for him. The door to the bathroom was open, causing his guess to only strengthen. His guess was eliminating as soon as he step into the bathroom and saw Maisie, back facing towards him, with no clothes, standing in the cold shower. Maisie, unfazed by the sudden intrusion, looked at Markus as his face grew as red as a tomato and stumbled out of the room yelling apologies.

Maisie quickly finished up and got dressed. Markus, who had since calmed down, watched in fascination as Maisie put in her contacts that turned her eyes from blood red to hazel. Maisie ignored his staring as she continued on. She ran her fingers through her hair, acting as though they were a makeshift brush, placing it strategically over her ears. Her outfit consisted of light blue jeans that were cut off right above her ankle. Her top was just a light grey t-shirt that was thin and flowy.

"How did you change your eye color?" Markus asked. Maisie felt herself chuckle.

"How old were you when you were taken?" Maisie asked.

"Uh… I think I was around 10 or 11" Markus answered.

"Alright, that explains it" Maisie sighed. She took a contact out of her right eye and showed it to him. "This is something called a contact. Sometimes they're colored, though these days' contacts are pretty rare and expensive. People who don't want to use glasses can use these. I had someone in the city make them for me."

"Why did ask how old I was when I was taken?" Markus asked.

"That would explain why you didn't know what contacts were" Maisie clarified. "I knew what they were when the Dracs took over, but I didn't know they could be colored until someone told me."

Maisie stretched out her arms. Her face returned to its usual dull expression as she walked to the door and waited. "Let's go"

Markus nodded as he ran after her. Maisie walked to the city like she usually did, except she stopped just before reaching the entrance. Markus was confused by the sudden stop as Maisie turned to look at him. Maisie closed her eyes, as if thinking, and went silent. Suddenly Maisie's eyes opened as she gestured to the gate to the city and started talking.

"Go to the gate and call for help. I'll keep an eye on you to make sure nothing happens." Maisie commanded. "Don't tell them my name AT ALL. Just say you were rescued by 'The Blood Bird'"

"I thought you hated that name" Markus interrupted.

"I do, but they'll look for me if they have a name to work with." Maisie explained. "I do go in the city a lot. If you see me, don't freak out. You can make contact, just don't go overboard"

"Do people keep talking to you?" Markus asked. "After you rescue them?"

"Yes, but it's a big area so I may not see you often." Maisie smiled for a moment. "Actually, I do talk to one of my prey quite often" Her smile faded. "But that's none of your concern. Now go, we don't have all day"

Markus nodded as he ran to the gate while Maisie hid nearby. Markus began yelling at the top of his lungs, banging on the gate.

"SOMEONE PLEASE LET ME IN! DON'T LET THE MONSTERS GET ME!" Markus screamed as guards rushed to open the gate and get him help.

 _Damn, he could've fooled me_ Maisie said as she hid her surprise. Maisie pulled her glasses out of her pocket and put them as the guards helped Markus into the city. _Another great hunt, Maisie_

Maisie made her way into the city as she did before and headed towards a shop in one of the more stable buildings. Walking in, Maisie saw a young man in his early with ruffled, caramel brown hair and dark brown eyes. His outfit was an old t-shirt and torn jeans. The shop itself had objects in any condition stored on shelves all around the room. The young man laughed at the customer before him as they turned to leave. When Maisie walked through the doors, the man's face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"Hey Birdy!" The man smiled. Maisie rolled her eyes, but couldn't resist the smile that grew on her face.

"I told you my name, yet you never use it" Maisie sighed. "How's business, Dustin?"

"It's going slow, but I'm getting there" The man, Dustin, smirked. "You make any deliveries lately?"

"Yeah, just this morning. Poor guy didn't know what contacts were" Maisie chuckled.

"You could always come to me for a snack instead of putting yourself in danger" Dustin said as gestured to his neck, Maisie rolled her eyes. "Speaking of the fangs, I got you a gift!"

"You shouldn't have" Maisie smiled. Dustin reached behind the counter and pulled out a ring, tossing it to her in a swift motion.

"One of my buddies got it from a vampire attack. Apparently they protect the blood suckers in the sun" Dustin explained. "So I thought you'd like, though I did paint it a little."

Maisie looked at the little, shiny rose-gold ring in awe. "I thought that would make it easier to do day jobs. Those glasses only keep you from going up in flames." Dustin explained further. "I asked my buddy if he could pick up a UV arm band next time he was out in battle"

"Thanks Dustin! What would I do without you?" Maisie smiled.

"Well for one, I would still be with the fangs and you would be up in flames" Dustin laughed.

Maisie placed the ring on her left hand and felt the subtle, uncomfortable tingling she was so used to disappear immediantely. Before she could enjoy her comfort, two officers walked into the little pawn shop. Dustin stepped in front of Maisie, protecting her like a mother.

"How can I help you officers?" Dustin asked.

"We were just wondering why a minor is out of school this early in the morning" The officer explained. "She has to be in school, it's the law. She'll have to come with us"

 _SHIT_


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter 3: Humans at their finest_

 _What did I do to deserve this?_ Maisie wondered as she walked through the halls of the school. The incident that morning had dampened her mood quite a bit.

…

" _Sorry, Maisie. You're enrolled as a student and considered a minor. My hands are tied." Dustin said with a sigh. The pair had been dragged to the school, practically against their will. Dustin, who was technically her legal guardian, had tried to get her out of school, but no amount of convincing worked. The government decided to make graduation necessary for the few humans left in this generation. When Maisie first began entering the city, she was qualified as a minor meaning it was required for her to attend school. She hadn't attended classes in a year (The reasons why ranged from too busy to too boring), which the school hadn't cared about until recently. Right now she was in a bathroom stall pulling on the ridiculous uniform students had to wear._

" _Isn't there anything you could do?" Maisie pouted._

" _No can do, Birdy. They said they wanted to sign you up for some kind of program after seeing the stunts you pulled in all those fights two years ago." Dustin explained. Maisie immediately blushed. She remembered those fights clear as day. Maisie hid her blush as she pulled on her shirt. "You're supposed to attend after school and you'll have an escort to insure you don't make a run for it like last year"_

" _What am I going to do about dinner? They'll probably keep an eye on me" Maisie said, grinding her teeth._

" _Don't worry about that. You can stay at my place til everything calms down" Dustin assured. Maisie walked out of the stall wearing the girl's uniform shirt and boy's pants. Dustin sent her a look of confusion._

" _I'm not showing off more skin than required" Maisie snapped as she placed her glasses on her face._

 _Dustin chuckled. "Alright, we get it. Anyways, try to survive the day and I'll chat with the school about releasing you. Just hang on til then."_

…

"'Hang on' he says. 'You'll be fine' he says" Maisie grumbled. "Dustin only had to go through one year of schooling. Pfft"

The school had identical gray walls surrounding a square, open center. This meant Maisie couldn't find any of her classes whatsoever.

 _I could just skip, I don't really care what the teachers have to say_ Maisie mentally shrugged to herself.

Her train of thought was quickly interrupted as she heard the sound of someone getting punched followed by a grunt and said person getting thrown against the railing. The boy who was hit had black, spiky hair with scary green eyes that angled as his angry tone of voice showed how pissed he was.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" The boy snapped.

The attacker just looked at his victim through a pair of thin rimmed glasses, similar to her own but without the silver bands next to the lens. His pink hair lay flat as his brown eyes were a mix of boredom and anger.

 _Should I intervene?_

"Alright you bastard!" The victim shouted. "You asked for it!"

Both boys began throwing punches that were a cross between aimed and wildly throwing attacks (If you could even describe it that way). Maisie was already thinking of ways to convince herself to leave them be, but her conscience got the best of her. Maisie approached the boys, who treated her like a painting on the wall, and took a breath. Before any of the boys realized it, she had grabbed one of the boys' arms and flipped them both over her shoulder where they hit the ground with a giant slap.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!" both boys shouted as Maisie looked at them both, expressionless.

"Keep your measuring contest outside of school, girls. No one wants to deal with your drama" Maisie snapped. The black haired boy rose to his feet and charged her, but she quickly aimed a kick at his feet, knocking him off balance, and pinned him to the ground. The pink haired boy seemed to get the point and walked away with a slightly defeated ego.

"GET OFF OF ME!" The boy pinned under Maisie shouted.

"Stop being so hardheaded and piss off" Maisie warned as she quickly walked away. She knew fully well she could've kicked that boy's ass, but she didn't want to waste any valuable energy on a moron.

 _I'll just hang out in the library til after school_

…

"Wakey, wakey!" A voice pierced through Maisie's slumber. Maisie opened her eyes only to find milk chocolate eyes staring back at her. Maisie raised her head to remember she had fallen asleep while reading at one of the library's tables. The girl in front of Maisie had lilac hair styled with the sides of her hair framing her face while the back of her hair was braided and held with a large red bow. The smirk on her face seemed to never go away. Maisie groaned.

"You're my escort?" Maisie asked with a yawn.

"I was expecting 'who are you?', but that works" The girl chuckled. "I'm Shinoa and, to answer your question, yes, I'm your escort."

Maisie rose to her feet, still fighting off sleep, and began following Shinoa.

"You don't seem to be putting up as much of a fight as you did this morning" Shinoa pointed out.

"You heard about that?" Maisie sighed.

"Who hasn't?" Shinoa giggled. "Everyone knows about it by now. Just like that fight two years ago! Tell me, what did you do to that girl again?"

"I roundhouse kicked her and beat the crap out of her boyfriend" Maisie answered truthfully. Honestly, she didn't regret a thing.

"Wow! No wonder they wanted to recruit you!" Shinoa smirked. "But then you skipped a year of school. What year are you now? 10th?"

"11th. I still have one more year"

"If you don't count the recovery course from last year's little vacation" Shinoa reminded. Maisie growled lowly, but mostly ignored that bit of information. The walk to the mystery location (At least to Maisie, it was a mystery) was mostly silence and Shinoa's skipping. When they reached the building (which reminded Maisie of the old brick libraries before the Dracs' takeover), Shinoa stopped at the entrance and scoffed.

"Of course they aren't here yet. We'll have to wait" Shinoa sighed as she leaned on one of the brick pillars.

"Wait for who?" Maisie questioned as she ignored the other students going past her.

"Two boys. One of them was in your third class, the one you skipped." Shinoa smirked.

Maisie stared off into the distance as she patiently waited. She didn't really mind the silence or the wait (It meant less class time). Suddenly, long after students stopped flooding into the building, she put her guard up as she heard two voices talking.

"… A couple of telephone poles with a bad attitude" Maisie heard a familiar voice groan.

"Sounds painful!" A new voice spoke.

"Here they are!" Shinoa said, perky as she waited for them to pass by her before speaking up. "You two are late. You made our new charge wait for you slow pokes"

Maisie looked at the boys only to see the boy she had pinned down earlier. Just as Shinoa was mentioning the boy's pummeled face, the two made eye contact and the boy immediately began curling his fist.

"What the hell is she doing here?!" He snapped as the other boy held him back.

"Calm down Yuu!"

"I'm assuming you've met before?" Shinoa chuckled. Maisie kept her face expressionless. "Is another suspension in order?"

The boy, who Maisie assumed was Yuu, lowered his fists while still glaring daggers at her. Once Yuu calmed down, the other let go and held out a hand towards Maisie.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Yoichi Saotome" The boy smiled. Maisie accepted (?) his hand shake and followed by introducing herself. _Remember the name you're registered under_

"Likewise. My name is Melissa O'Connor" Maisie said, feeling the lie slip off her tongue like a knife through butter.

"We better head inside before the class gets too far ahead." Shinoa Sated as she started walking inside. Maisie stopped and spoke up.

"What class are we going to?" Maisie asked. The trio turned and looked at her like she had grown a second head.

"They didn't tell you?" Yuu snapped.

"You're being recruited for the Moon Demon Company, a vampire exterminating unit" Shinoa explained. "Most volunteer, but according to your records, you were so qualified that you were drafted instead! Lucky you!"

 _Aw shit!_ Maisie thought as she began sweating. _Of course this would happen. I'm so screwed_

The group headed inside the building, Maisie mostly following the group until Shinoa opened a random set of doors and yelled "Excuse me everyone!"

Maisie began feeling nervous as she saw that the classroom was mostly filled with other students. Her heart started racing at the thought of being in that room. _You're 17. Get a hold of yourself!_ Maisie lectured herself. _It wasn't a problem yesterday; it shouldn't be a problem today!_

Once the group stepped in the room, Maisie could see it was a wide classroom with a single desk in the front of the room with a chalkboard behind it. Sitting in the desk, with his feet propped up, was a tall man with ruffled black hair and a decorated military uniform that made the hair on Maisie's neck stand up.

"Sorry we're late, these two slowpokes kept us waiting" Shinoa snickered, throwing the two boys under the bus. When the man didn't respond, Shinoa spoke up. "Um, sir?"

"Fine" The man groaned, lifting his head. He rose to his feet, slightly shouting "Time to get started!"

Maisie attempted to get a feel for the man's personality as he spoke. "The reason I'm making a rare appearance in class today is because we have a few transfer students I want to introduce you to."

"Ya know, just for your information" Shinoa interrupted. "The supervising teacher should probably be coming to class _everyday_ " She said, putting an emphasis on the last word.

"Why don't you mind your own business?" The man snapped as he continued. "So, anyway, as I was saying. These are the transfers; Yuuichirou Hyakuya, Yoichi Saotome, and Melissa O'Connor" There was a pause before he quickly added "Though it might be easier to remember them as the idiot, the wuss, and the dropout"

 _I see how it is, Jackass_ Maisie thought as she mentally added "The dropout" to the list of nicknames she hated.

"You're calling me an idiot?" Yuu snapped.

"Well it's the truth" The man shot back. "Now go ahead and introduce yourselves" he said, gesturing to the class.

"Why bother?!" Yuu snapped as he stepped up next to the man and slapped the chalk board. "I don't care about any of the people in this class. I'm not here to be liked or make friends! You weaklings can piss off and become vampire food for all I care!"

That was nothing to joke about, especially considering how horrible "livestock" were treated. Now it was personal. Maisie felt her anger control her as she walked behind Yuu shouting "Everyone stand back" before grabbing Yuu's arm and throwing him over her shoulder, causing him to crash into the front desks.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Yuu snapped as he groaned in pain. The class chuckled lightly as Shinoa full-out laughed.

"Are you always this stupid?! If you're so confident, go fight the vampires without the Moon-whatever's supplies!" Maisie snapped. "Stop acting like a child and shitting on everyone else!"

Everyone was silent for a moment as Maisie silently walked to the back of the class and sat down, her before-mentioned anxiety settling in. Suddenly, Shinoa started laughing once again. "Quite the spitfire, isn't she, lieutenant colonel Guren?"

"Indeed, and those little stunts were why she was drafted in the first place. At least Yuu knows where she stands." The man, Guren, looked at Yuu on the ground and laughed.

"If you were beaten by a girl like her, then you have a long way to go. Now go sit in the back so we can get started." Guren commanded.

Yuu got up and headed to an open seat, except that the person behind him had their feet propped up, blocking his way. "Hey, move your feet" Yuu demanded. "This is where the lieutenant colonel said I'm supposed to sit" The boy didn't move his feet, the book folded over his face hiding his features. "You listening? Time to get moving"

"Can't you see that I'm trying to sleep?" The boy said with a tired voice. Maisie felt herself groan as she recognized the voice immediately. "Ugh, back off" he said as he lifted the book.

The two made eye contact and Maisie began tuning out their bickering.

 _ **It's going to be a LOOOOOOONG class**_

* * *

 **I know I don't usually add foot notes, but I wanted to thank Mide and Guest for their lovely reviews! It honestly made my day and made me want to put my all into this chapter! (Feel free to offer criticism (Or ask questions, I don't mind answering) though so I can improve!)**

 **I'll try not to put many of these footnotes since you guys either don't care or just want to focus on the story. I just wanted to thank the above mentioned people for lovely reviews!**

 **-Vix**


	4. Chapter 4

_Chapter 4: Secrets don't keep_

"Any news on the 'Blood bird'?"

"Nothing different. She dropped off another civilian."

"Did we get a name this time?"

"Nothing so far, but there was no delivery yesterday… The same day a certain student returned to class after a year"

"So our suspicions were correct."

"Should we dispose of her?"

"No, let's use her to our advantage… She could be useful to us"

…

Maisie was on edge, to say the least. She had been trapped in the city for ten days and she was already going mad. Her ten days could be summed by "bickering idiots and stupid team exercises". Not to mention Dustin's idea for her "dinner" was dripping his blood into a cup for her (Which caused Maisie to begin stressing over how much he was giving her). She hadn't been around so many humans since she was turned, which triggered something Dustin had called "social anxiety".

Right now, Maisie was enduring another extremely boring class with the two morons behind her.

"Alright! Pay attention" The teacher, who Maisie later found out wasn't the general, called as she tapped a stack of papers against her desk. "I've already finished grading your written exams, so I'll just be handing those out and calling it a day, okay?" Maisie sighed in relief as the teacher walked around passing back papers as she continued talking.

"Remember, this score is crucial to your overall cursed gear ranking. The way you perform in class is just as important as training" The teacher reminded. "I expect those of you with less than passing grades to put extra effort into your studies from now on"

Maisie's papers landed on her desk with the scores written in red ink. _98, on two and an 82? Pretty well, I guess_ Maisie thought with a sigh. _I'll probably forget all the material once I step out of this room_

Suddenly, Maisie's attention was called when Shinoa started yelling and jumping away from Yuu.

"Wow! Would you look at this score?!" Shinoa shouted with the excitement of a four-year-old. "How impressive!"

"Hey! Cut it out!" Yuu shouted as he chasing after Shinoa, who had stolen his exam paper. Shinoa dodged, causing Yuu to run into the door trim face first. Shinoa just giggled.

"You've really outdone yourself! They say only super humans get a score like this!" Shinoa laughed as she ran to the front of the classroom.

Yuu continued chasing her and he yelled "Quit being such a pest!"

"Don't you want to share it?" Shinoa teased. "You should be so proud!"

"Shinoa! Give that back!" Yuu shouted.

"Shinoa, you're taking this too far" Maisie warned as she got out of her seat, warning her escort.

Yuu finally grabbed Shinoa, who had dropped the paper onto a desk, allowing everyone to see it. Maisie, feeling some pity for the boy, walked over to the crowd around the paper.

"How did he get zero- Hey!" One boy said as Maisie snatched the paper. "We were looking at that!"

"I don't see your name on it" Maisie snapped as she walked over to Yuu and handed him the paper.

"I didn't need your help" Yuu muttered as he stuffed the paper in his pocket.

"I know, but you got it anyway" Maisie shrugged as she returned to her seat.

"Why did you have to ruin all the fun, Lisa?" Shinoa pouted. Maisie glared at Shinoa, who was sitting at her desk.

"My name's Melissa. Not Mel, not Lisa, just Melissa" Maisie snapped.

"You're both so uptight! You should try fitting in." Shinoa laughed.

"By pushing our buttons?" Maisie snapped. "And showing off people's scores?"

"So you can relate to people! You two should be more grateful"

"You can take your gratitude and choke on it!" Yuu joined in. "I'll tell you what I keep telling Guren; I don't need friends to stick it to the bloodsuckers, are we clear?"

 _I don't even want to be here_ Maisie sighed.

"Yeah, we're as clear as crystal" Shinoa rolled her eyes. "Just don't come crying to me when you realize you're completely worthless by yourself"

"Oh yeah?" Yuu challenged. "I'll kill 50 of those fangs with my eyes closed"

 _Keep telling yourself that_

"Said the childish fool" Shinoa fired.

"You're a childish fool!" Yuu said slamming his hands onto Shinoa's desk.

"Come on, it makes sense that you failed" Yoichi said suddenly. "Sorry, that didn't come out like I meant it to-"

"You think?" Maisie interrupted.

"I'm just saying that since you spent several years as a prisoner of the vampires, your Japanese reading and writing skills aren't as strong as your English and Latin are." Yoichi clarified. "It makes sense that you failed"

"At least someone's using their head" Maisie sighed.

Yuu glared her way. "Well it does make-"

"Your excuse is crappier than your test score" a certain pink haired student interrupted (Whose name turned out to be Shiho Kimizuki).

"You couldn't just let him think that?" Maisie snapped as she fixed her glasses.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Yuu yelled at Maisie as she ignored him.

"What? I'm just telling him the truth" Shiho said while looking at Yuu's paper.

"Then what's your score?" Yuu snapped. "Better be epic or I'll pop you one for being an arrogant ass!"

"Yuu, maybe you should-" Maisie tried to warn.

"Shut it!" Yuu snapped as his attention turned back to Shiho. "Come on, four eyes! Let's see how smart you really are!"

"See for yourself" Shiho said as he nudged his papers with his shoes. Maisie leaned over, just as curious. Her and Yuu's jaw dropped. 100's were written on all three papers. "Latin, English, and Japanese Spellcraft. Easy stuff" Even Maisie was jealous as her stronger subject was Latin (With her weaker being spellcraft).

"Foreign languages aren't even my strong suit" Shiho admitted. "Should be no match for a seasoned study-abroad poser like you"

Shinoa laughed at Maisie, who blushed (More like her face heated up since she was too pale to actually blush) and turned away. Yuu, who had no comeback, got into a fighting position, challenging Shiho.

"How about I use you for vamp killing practice?!" Yuu yelled.

"Oh yeah, tough guy?! Come on! Let's see you try!" Shiho yelled back as he stood up from his seat. Both growled at each other with hands in their pockets.

"Yuu! Please stop fighting!" Yoichi shouted as he ran over.

 _They're not even fighting… just bitching at each other_ Maisie though as her patience was running out.

"Uh… By the way" The teacher tried to talk over the three arguing in the back. "I still haven't dismissed you from class yet"

 _DISMISS US ALREADY_ Maisie yelled mentally as she put her head down on the desk. Suddenly the classroom door opened and a familiar lieutenant general popped his head in.

"Hey! I can hear you morons half-way down the hall" Guren snapped. "What's the deal?"

"Welcome back lieutenant colonel Guren!" The teacher said with her cheeks blushing. "I hope everything went well!"

 _Wait, does she have a thing for that Guren guy?_ Maisie chuckled. _That's adorable!_

Guren walked into the room, looking at the class. "As well as you'd expect. What else is new?" He said with boredom. "Anyway, is there a reason for all the racket?"

"Those two…" She trailed off.

"I should've known" Guren sighed. Yuu made eye contact with Guren and actually stopped fighting, putting up a hand to silence Shiho.

"Wait, let's put this on hold for now. " Yuu said seriously. "Guren's come out of hiding"

"Yuu, can't you just-" Maisie growled as he ignored her. Yoichi gave her a look of sympathy.

"What's the deal?" Yuu shouted at Guren. "I thought you said I would get to contract with a demon! How much longer do I have to-"

To Maisie's surprise (and annoyance), Shiho pushed Yuu out of the way.

"Let me do the talking, you're too loud" Shiho complained as he made eye contact with Guren. "With all due respect, I think you owe us an explanation. You have an obligation to this class. You left for ten days without any regards for your students. I think giving us some cursed gear would make up for that"

It was now that everything they were saying was sinking into Maisie's brain and registering. _THAT'S WHAT A CURSED GEAR IS?! MAKING A CONTRACT WITH A DEMON?!_ Looking at Yuu, Maisie's expression filled with dread. "Who the hell would trust that moron with demon-cursed weapon?" She said with shock.

"What did you-" Yuu snapped, but Guren interrupted him.

"My thoughts exactly" Guren smirked as he turned to Shiho. "You think a bunch of dumbass losers like you have what it takes to tangle with a demon, huh? You should listen to the dropout, she seems to know better"

Maisie growled at the nickname. "Screw that!" Yuu shouted. "The only dumbass in here is Kimizuki! I won't fail!"

"You sure failed that exam" Maisie pointed out and Shiho chuckled.

"Shut up! No one asked for your opinion!" Yuu snapped.

"Oh yeah?" Shiho smirked. Next thing she knew, the two had punched each other in the face. Both were sent back as Shiho fixed his glasses.

 _WHY IS VIOLENCE SO ENCOURAGED NOW?!_ Maisie thought with disappointment. _Before the dracs took over, these two morons would've been expelled already!_

"So, what's your assessment?" Guren asked. "Can this class resist the demon's temptation?"

Only Maisie heard this due to her advanced hearing and this made her unsure. _Vampires and demons don't sound like a good combination, especially if I'm involved._

"Hmmm there's always room for improvement." The teacher admitted. "But those two are much stronger than I was at sixteen. I think they can do it."

"What about the others?"

"There are a few contenders" The teacher said as she faced Guren. "But Yoichi Saotome takes the cake. He has a surprisingly high stability against demons. Though Melissa O'Connor is a close second"

"Oh really?" Guren said, surprised. "Okay then. Why don't we give it a shot now? It's less complicated that way."

Maisie immediately tensed up as Guren grabbed his sword.

"No! You can't do that in the classroom!" The teacher yelled.

"My! Are you planning to attack?! This sure got interesting fast!" Shinoa smirked.

"Shinoa! That's not-" Maisie shouted until Guren drew his sword, allowing a black aura to escape.

"If you die from this, blame yourselves for not training hard enough!" Guren smirked.

 _What the hell is he thinking?!_

Guren stabbed his sword into the ground, spreading the aura throughout the room. Maisie stomach dropped to her feet as she looked around the room with a sick feeling in her gut. The students around her screamed as they dropped to the floor.

"What the hell is going on?"

"My heart feels like it's being squeezed!" Shiho said as he laid a hand on the desk beside him.

"What's wrong with everybody?" Yoichi said, looking around him. Maisie stood up and felt fear rising in her gut as her gaze fell on the sword that caused all this pain. Even the teacher had to hold some kind of special paper (?) to remain standing. After what seemed like an eternity, Guren finally pulled his sword out of the ground and sheathed it.

"I think that's enough for now" Guren said with a smile as the evil aura disappeared. When the lights came back on, Maisie looked around and saw the damage from just stabbing the ground with his demon sword. The walls and chalkboard were all cracked. Desks were moved and students laid everywhere (except for two, who got knocked out while standing).

"Alright! Good! If you're still conscious, you got a chance" Guren said with his signature smirk. "Make no mistake, you've still got a long way to go, but if you continue and study your spell craft, you could move into the contract ceremony for a cursed gear"

"What the hell was that?!" Maisie yelled.

"It was a demon aura. I'm surprised you're still standing" Guren admitted. "So it's true what they say about you"

Maisie bit her tongue to prevent herself from saying something she would regret.

"The six of you that are still on your feet, you just earned five stars" Guren smirked. "You'll get to try out for a black demon series cursed gear, the same rate of weapon as my sword"

"You mean four" Maisie corrected.

"Are you blind? There's-" Suddenly the two standing, but knocked out, students fell to the ground. "Nevermind. Looks like there's only Yuu, Kimizuki, Yoichi, and Melissa"

Guren looked at a smiling Shinoa with disappointment. "I wish you had passed out"

"Hah" Shinoa smirked.

"Dealing with demons is like a day at the beach for you, isn't it?" Guren sighed. "Guess I should expect as much from general Hiragi's daughter. You probably didn't even use a ward. What a turn-off"

"Aw! Don't be that way!" Shinoa teased. "You know I'm the cutest thing you've ever seen in your life~!"

"Piss off!"

 _Alright then… That explains why she can get away with all this_ Maisie groaned.

"Let's go before I change my mind" Guren snapped as the group followed.

 _I can't exactly say I'm not interested. Even if I was drafted… I have to pretend to be interested._ Maisie thought as she took deep breaths. Suddenly a realization came to mind. _DID WE JUST LEAVE ALL THOSE KNOCKED OUT KIDS IN THE CLASSROOM ALONE?! WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH EVERYBODY?!_

Maisie followed the group down a set of stairs, trying to ignore the tense atmosphere.

"So, uh, lieutenant colonel Guren?" The teacher asked. "I know I should expect unconventional test and tactics from you, but I'm not entirely sure letting Yoichi or Melissa try out for the black demon series is a good idea"

"Do you have a problem with my decision?" Guren asked.

"No, sir. That's not what I'm saying" Their teacher said nervously. "It's just… I'm not certain they have enough strength to accept a demon into-"

"Tough" Guren chuckled. "If they don't have the strength, they die. That's the world we live in. We're not playing games here"

Maisie and Yuu could see the doubt on Yoichi's face slowly grow. Maisie was nervous too, but for a different reason. The group walked a little more before their teacher spoke up again.

"But sir-"

"For crying out loud!" Guren muttered as he stopped the group and faced Maisie and Yoichi. "Yoichi, tell me. You still want to avenge your sister's death at the hands of the vampires, don't you?"

Maisie's heart sunk. He would've been eight when his sister was if it was during the Dracs takeover. _A year younger than me… And the same age Hannah would be now if she was still with me_. This didn't help Maisie feel less like a monster.

"Yes, of course" Yoichi said nervously.

"Alright. Are you going to die for it?" Guren asked.

Yoichi hesitated. "I… I don't know"

"Then you should quit right now" Guren said harshly. "If you have any doubts, go back up those stairs" He then turned to Maisie. "What about you, Melissa?" Guren asked. "You'd have to do it eventually since you were drafted"

"I don't see why I shouldn't get it over with" Maisie shrugged. Maisie's answer didn't help Yoichi as he looked conflicted.

"Go Yoichi" Yuu said with a serious tone. "This isn't the kind of place a nice guy like you should be in and you know it"

"I agree, Saotome" Shiho spoke up. "Leave while you can"

Yoichi grabbed his head, on the brink of tears. Yoichi then lowered his hands just as Guren was losing his patience.

"Did you now hear what I said?" Guren snapped. "Get outta he-"

"I've made up my mind" Yoichi said with a little more confidence than before. "I'm doing it! This is the only way I'll get the strength I need! I have to make sure nothing in this world can take the people I hold dear ever again!"

Maisie saw the look Yuu gave Yoichi and felt pity for both boys, who seemed to understand what each of them went through. The room was tense for moment until Guren smiled and said "Alright! Let's keep moving people!" The group began walking again just as Guren muttered "Time for the ceremony"

As they walked down, Maisie put a supporting on Yoichi's shoulder. Yoichi looked and smiled, as if to say thank you, as the group reached the end of the stairs. At the end of the stairs was an elevator that the group then boarded. On the way down, Yoichi began looking nervous. Yuu noticed this and hit Yoichi on the back of the shoulder.

"Getting cold feet now isn't gonna help" Yuu smirked.

"Uh…"

"There's no point worrying about it" Shiho spoke up. "Deal with it. You've made your choice."

"That's not helping" Maisie snapped.

"Look, we can't baby him" Shiho fired back.

"I'm not saying that" Maisie growled. "You just don't have to be an ass"

"I'm just telling him the truth!" Shiho snapped.

"Are you sure you can 'deal with it' Kimizuki?" Shinoa smirked. "The truth is you were standing at first, then you leaned over. Was the demon too much to handle?"

Shiho flinched and Maisie realized Shinoa hit a nerve.

"You saw it too, right Yoichi?" Shinoa asked.

"Me? Well… yeah" Yoichi said honestly.

"Stop paying attention to the small things!" Shiho shouted.

"They weren't the only ones who saw it, Kimizuki!" Yuu teased.

"Now that you mention it" Maisie teased.

"Not you too!" Shiho growled. Maisie felt herself laugh for a second before a piercing pain in her bottom lip.

"Shit!" Maisie muttered as she covered her mouth. _Damn it! My fangs!_

"Are you okay?" Yoichi asked. Maisie tensed up as her fangs retracted once more and she removed her hand from her mouth.

"Yeah, I just bit my lip" Maisie sighed as she showed him the tiny smear of blood on her hand. "I think I'll live"

"Ouch. That looks like it hurts" Shinoa frowned.

"It's nothing" Maisie assured.

"Don't get too comfortable" Guren warned. "These demons are much stronger than those used to created regular cursed gear" He looked at the group. "If you let your guard down for an instant it'll kill you"

"Yeah, I already know" Yuu said in a tone matching Guren's. It was then that the elevator doors opened.

"Welcome to the edge of Hell" Guren said in a serious tone. The area was octagon with seven sides having carvings of demon masks above pits of sand with weapons in each of them. In front of each pit was a red rope, some kind of circle and a set of stairs. Their teacher stayed behind in the elevator waving as everyone else walked out of the elevator.

"What is this, a temple?" Yuu asked.

"It's the home of the thing you want most of all" Guren confirmed. "The highest ranking weapons with demon kings sealed inside them are kept here"

"The highest ranking, huh?" Yuu asked. Yuu kept his eye on the middle weapon out of the whole bunch. "So, if I have one of these, I can kill all the vampires?"

"That depends on your personal skill" Guren clarified.

"Okay, but they're all the same as your sword, right?"

"Yes, the rare black demon series" Guren said as he turned towards them. "Quit asking questions. Let's get started. I have better things to do than hang out in a dark cellar with a couple of newbies"

"Fine, what do I have to do?" Yuu said stubbornly.

"Pick a weapon you like and enter the spell circle" Guren explained. "Once you touch the weapon, the contract ceremony will begin automatically. If you don't lose to the demon, you'll gain it's power."

"And what if we do lose?" Shiho bravely asked.

"You'll either become a man eating monster or the demon's power will crush your soul and kill you" Guren said bluntly.

"Awesome" Maisie cringed.

"It's not pleasant. Either way, you're dead. If you start to go monster on us, I'll kill you myself" Guren chuckled.

Yuu chuckled as he headed up one of the stairs and walked into a spell circle. "Fine by me. I've been waiting a long time for a chance like this" Yuu said with determination. "Besides, I'd rather fight with a demon than sit through another boring lecture"

Maisie gulped as she heard what no one else could hear Yuu say.

"The vampires will suffer. For Mika and my family I will slaughter every last one of them" Yuu looked at the demon face. "That's the only thing I still live for."

"Then draw" Guren muttered as the other two boys approached their weapons. "And it'll begin."

Yuu grabbed the sword and shouted "Alright you bastard, let's dance! Give me your power!"

When Yuu drew the sword, the spell circle lit up green. The same happened to the other boys and all three passed out on the spell circles.

"I guess I should choose" Maisie said. Suddenly, she was thrown across the room, her body slamming into the elevator, leaving a small, but visible dent. Guren started laughing.

"That's funny" Guren said as he continued laughing. Maisie shook off the shock as she climbed to her feet, only to have Guren's sword aimed at her neck.

" **Why would I give a vampire a cursed gear?"**


	5. Chapter 5

_Chapter 5: Imprisoned_

"Does Guren know one of his top students is a suspected vampire?"

"He did sleep during the meeting"

Someone chuckled. "Guren knows. Besides, he was in charge of the 'blood bird' case for a while after it started"

"Maybe he can get a name from her" A sigh was released "We have everything else, like her cover up name"

"How do you know we can use her?"

"Guren suspects there's something she cares about in the city… Something that keeps bringing her back" A smirk spread on this person's face as they said "Or _someone_ "

…

Maisie didn't know whether to cry or scream, neither would save her, so she just looked at Guren, her blank expression fading as her fangs crept out. The two were silent for a moment, Maisie's heartbeat pounding in her ears. Her glasses lay on the floor crumpled.

"It's nice to finally meet the blood bird that stumped the military" Guren smirked. "We had suspicions last year about who you were, but we couldn't get close enough"

"So you drafted me" Maisie realized "So you could have your chance"

"Exactly" Guren smirked. "How does it feel to be scared, birdy?"

"Don't call me that" Maisie growled. The sword inched closer to her neck, the cold metal touching her skin.

"What rank are you?" Guren asked, his voice demanding.

"What?" Maisie looked at him confused.

"Don't play dumb, what's your rank?" Guren demanded, allowing his sword to pierce her skin, a small trail of blood going down her neck.

"I'm not playing! What are you talking about?" Maisie said, holding back most of her frustration.

Guren just laughed. "So Hiragi was right… You're all alone"

"Thanks for pointing that out" Maisie said as Guren retracted his sword. Maisie fell to her knees in relief.

"Now you'll answer my questions or I'll kill you myself" Guren ordered.

 _Wow, what a choice_ Maisie thought as she cleared her throat. "What do you want to know?"

"First, what's your real name?" Guren asked. "We know the name you're using is fake"

"Not exactly"

"What?"

"I said 'not exactly'." Maisie repeated. "My last name is fake. My real name, before the takeover, was Melissa Kennan"

"Kennan… I've heard of that name before…" Guren thought for a moment (or at least pretended to). "Isn't there a little eight-year-old girl named Hannah Kennan living in the city?"

In that instant, Maisie's anger flashed as she hissed at Guren, her eyes flashing red through her contacts. Guren's sword pulsed as he quickly aimed it at Maisie's heart, stopping her from attacking. Maisie froze just as the sword barely touched her skin, anger visible in every muscle. He grinned, the darkness of his sword surrounding him in a suffocating aura.

"So you can get angry!" Guren laughed.

"Don't you dare lay a hand on my sister" Maisie growled. _She doesn't deserve to get hurt_

"I think you're forgetting who's in control" Guren smirked. "Next question; how did you get turned?"

Maisie turned away. Guren, losing his patience, pierced her skin, deeper this time. Maisie felt fear growing as she realized she wasn't healing. She could feel the sword get closer to her heart, deteriorating the skin around the sword.

"I don't have all day. How were you turned?" Guren repeated. Maisie bit her lip and took another breath before answering.

"I bit the hand of a vampire with purple hair." Maisie admitted with a lump in her throat. "I wasn't transformed until two days after. I almost died"

"Purple hair… Ferid" Guren growled. "Of course. That makes you a progenitor."

"A what?" Maisie said, her face showing pure confusion.

"Never mind" Guren snapped as he once again retracted his sword from Maisie's chest, allowing her to slowly heal. Maisie gasped for air once the sword was removed, shaking at the puddles of her blood on the ground. "Now we can't have a rogue vampire running around the city, now can we?"

"So kill me" Maisie chuckled. "I'm not of any use to you"

"Not so fast" Guren smirked. "A vampire working with the Demon Moon Company would be a huge advantage. We could also offer protection, should anyone find out about your 'issues'"

He looked at Maisie.

"Unless you refuse. Then you die and I can't guarantee what happens to your little sister or your 'guardian'"

Maisie felt cornered. "I'm assuming Shinoa knows and is guarding the stairs?"

"You're smarter than you look"

 _Dammit_

Maisie took a deep breath as Guren was getting impatient once more.

"Maisie"

"What?" Guren questioned.

"If we're going to work together, you should at least call me by my preferred nickname since my full name is a little long" Maisie chuckled as she held out her hand. "It's Maisie"

Guren was silent for a moment before the elevator opened and Shinoa walked out, bursting into laughter. Maisie sighed in relief.

"Well that was easy" Shinoa laughed as she approached the two holding a pile of clean clothes.

"I thought you were guarding the exit" Guren snapped.

"I was, but if you were going to kill her, you would've done it by now" Shinoa smirked. She approached Maisie, handing her the clean clothes. Maisie looked at her with confusion. "Your clothes are all bloody and your fangs are out. You should probably clean up before the boys wake up"

Maisie nodded and she walked to the door of the elevator and picked up her crumpled glasses, sighing as they were now unwearable.

"Why do you need those? It's not like you have problems reading"

"No, but it's made from the rings vampires use out in the sun. Keeps me from going insane" Maisie explained. "I'll just get another pair, it's not an issue"

"You better hurry" Shinoa warned. "Kimizuki and Yu will be finished soon"

Maisie nodded and stepped into the elevator to change, still shaking from the before mentioned events.

…

"So what is it like, living off blood?" Shinoa asked an annoyed Maisie.

"Just dandy"

"What does it taste like?" Shinoa asked sweetly.

"It tastes like chicken" Maisie said out of annoyance. Maisie had changed out of her bloody uniform and was now wearing a light grey t-shirt and a pair of shorts a little longer than the skirt Shinoa was wearing.

"Oh really? Fascinating!" Shinoa said as if it was some scientific discovery. "What was it like being turned?"

"Considering that the back of my head was split open and I was paralyzed, it wasn't fun" Maisie snapped.

"That sounds like it hurt! What about-"

"Shinoa, that's enough" Guren interrupted. Suddenly, some rustling was heard. Shiho shot up, as if he had a bad dream, gripping his new weapon, a pair of large daggers connected by a cord.

"I beat it" Shiho said as he looked around him, sighing in relief. Maisie silently wondered if he secretly doubting himself. She remembered on their second day of class, during one of the team building exercises, he was called out by teachers who had informed him about his sister's health declining. Maisie recalled having a heavy feeling in her chest since there were memories she wanted to avoid remembering. He had snapped at her when he saw the look of pity she was giving him before Yu convinced him to leave (Easily one of the smarter things Yu has done).

"Congratulations, you made a contract with a demon" Guren smirked.

Shiho got to his feet and almost immediately noticed the damage and pools of some-what dried blood by the elevator. His eyes stared questionably at Maisie, was already nervous. _I guess it was too much to hope that no one would notice my change of clothes or the blood_

"What the hell happened?" Shiho asked, gripping his new weapon tightly.

 _I'm so screwed_ "Well-" Maisie tried to answer before Shinoa interrupted.

" _Someone_ is on their lady days and had to change clothes"Shinoa smirked. Shiho was confused for a moment before breaking eye contact with Maisie and looking away. Guren chuckled while Maisie was mortified.

"THAT'S BULLSHIT AND YOU KNOW IT!" Maisie snapped. Her face went red as Shinoa laughed.

"Don't be so shy, it happens" Shinoa chuckled as her devilish smirk grew.

"THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN" Maisie yelled as her voice cracked out of frustration.

"Maisie challenged Shinoa and got injured in the process so she had to get bandaged and change" Guren said, lying with little effort. Maisie was slightly stunned.

"Well that was stupid" Shiho said bluntly. "That explains the dent in the elevator"

"Yeah, it was a pretty bad fight" Maisie lied. _He believes Guren more than Shinoa_

"Wait, if you're up before me, where's your weapon?" Shiho asked.

"Uhh" Maisie was caught with her guard down as she looked at Guren.

"Because of her little fight, she will be the last to get her weapon" Guren said, glaring at Maisie to sell the lie even more. "If she gets one at all"

"Shouldn't have gotten cocky" Shinoa snickered. Maisie stuffed her hands into her pockets and looked at the ground in shame.

She was a fish on land when it came to social interactions. In a way, being a vampire matched her personality perfectly. Pretending to be human would've been easy when she was first turned, but after years of being alone, her social life was close to nothing.

 _Especially when everything alive wants to kill you_.

She had considered joining the vampires once or twice within her first year of being turned, but she realized they would've killed her right off the bat or treated her like livestock. She left her secret in the hands of Guren and Shinoa, which she prayed she wouldn't regret. She didn't need another species against her, not when her sister and best friend were at stake.

"Maisie" Guren's voice snapped through Maisie's thoughts as she looked up.

"Sorry, I zoned out." Maisie admitted.

"So that's your nickname?" Shinoa awed as Maisie realized she couldn't avoid this. "So pretty!"

"Maisie? I thought your name was Melissa" Shiho said confused.

"Melissa is my full name. Maisie is the name my parents called me when I was little" Maisie admitted as she glared at Shinoa. "You happy now?"

"Very" Shinoa giggled.

 _Stupid jerk_ Maisie thought as more rustling and a gasp was heard from Yu's direction. Yu slowly sat up, realizing where he was.

"You're awake" Guren said as he approached with Shinoa and Maisie not far behind. "How you feeling, Yu?"

"I'm okay" Yu said as he glanced at the sword beside him. "Hah. I beat the demon"

"I wouldn't get too cocky" Shiho spoke up. "You sure took your sweet time subjugating the damn thing"

Yu looked at Shiho with surprise "You got a cursed gear too?"

"Of course I did" Shiho said with a blunt attitude.

"And Yoichi"

"We don't know" Maisie revealed. "He's still knocked out"

Everyone turned their attention to Yoichi, who was still passed out on the spell circle, which was illuminating a pale blue light. After a while, Guren had taken a seat on one of the many sets of stairs while Maisie had sat on the floor nearby, enjoying the silence.

All of a sudden, a bad feeling made it's to Maisie, causing her fangs to slightly poke out. That feeling began to grow in the pit of her stomach. This was the same feeling she got when Guren had released his sword's aura out on the entire class. She grabbed Guren's arm with enough strength for him to look uncomfortable. Once she realized she was hurting him, she released her grip.

"Something bad is going on, Guren" Maisie whispered. "Don't you feel that?"

Guren nodded in understanding, but remained calm. Maisie retracted her hand but remained on guard. Her feeling of discomfort was confirmed when, no more than a minute later, the altar in front of Yoichi cracked, splitting the sculptured demon face above it, and sent out a purple fog.

Her fangs, as if they knew there was danger, came out and stabbing her already bloody bottom lip. Maisie struggled to retract them, causing her intense pain. Maisie looked at the altar, seeing a silhouette of Yoichi rise to his feet before disappearing.

"Oh man, this is not good" Guren said as he rose to his feet. He approached the center of the room, one hand on his hip. "Looks like Yoichi didn't have the strength to overcome possession. But I guess having two out of three students pass the black demon trial isn't that bad at all"

"Hey, wait, where'd he go?" Yu asked as everyone became alert.

Maisie felt someone looking at her from above. "Up there" She said without looking. "He's watching us"

"One, two, three, four, five little humans all for me" Yoichi's voice broadcasted from above. "Dammit, but they've each got cursed gears… except one. Power hungry humans are such a pain in the ass. Might as well take out the defenseless one first" He held out his hand, as if gripping something. "My bow"

Guren put a hand through his hair mid-way as he said with annoyance "All right. Now that you two have got both your cursed gear, it's time for your first mission. There's a human eating demon loose somewhere in this room. It's up to you guys to deal with it. Show that bastard who's in control. And you" Guren looked to Maisie. "Stay in line. We don't need anyone getting hurt" Guren said with a glare. Maisie nodded, keeping her mouth closed as she struggled to retract her fangs. _Dammit, why now?! Why is this happening?_

Maisie's feet went cold as she felt as if there was a large bullseye on her back.

"You'll be my appetizer" Yoichi laughed. "Then the real feast will begin!"

The sound of an arrow firing spread throughout the room as Maisie turned to find that she was Yoichi's target. Shinoa grabbed Maisie just before the blast of energy hit her. Both girls ran to the back, the fog hiding Maisie and she began freaking out.

"Control your fangs!" Shinoa whispered harshly.

"I can't! They won't retract, I don't know what to do" Maisie said quietly and blood from her lip fell down her chin.

Maisie wiped the blood on her arm as she stayed behind Shinoa, shaking. Yoichi hoped to the top of another altar, keeping his eye on Maisie. Suddenly, he laughed.

"Looks like the humans have a trump card. No matter, I'll start with the others!"

Yoichi aimed and released an attack on Yu and Shiho, causing dust to fly up and surround the group. Guren sighed. "Well, great. This demon is coming at us in full force. Yoichi must've just been a snack to whet its appetite"

"Lieutenant colonel" Shinoa called out as she walked towards him with Maisie following. "May I share my opinion?"

"Please don't. Quiet!"

"The situation's getting out of control!" Shinoa said harshly. "Maisie can't control her fangs, at this rate-"

"Hey Guren!" Yu yelled as he ran, dodging Yoichi's attack. "How are we supposed to deal with this?" Yu said as he was thrown across the by Yoichi's next attack, landing next to the trio. "Yoichi's still one of us!"

"Look at him! Your classmate's body is just a vessel now" Guren said bluntly. "The only way to save Yoichi is to destroy it!"

"What the hell, man!" Yu complained. "There's no way I'm gonna kill one of my friends!"

"Don't you get soft on me!" Guren snapped. "This is the Moon Demon Company. Extermination is your job! Or are you guys all talk and just here to play around with cursed gear?"

Shiho landed next to Yu, obviously struggling with the decision himself.

"If you wanna get killed, that's on you!" Guren shouted. "But that monster's not your friend anymore"

"Is Yoichi really gone?" Maisie asked Shinoa with a hand over her mouth.

"The demon ate his soul. I doubt we can save him" Shinoa said with little emotion.

 _I know I didn't really know him, but he was a sweet kid_ Maisie sighed, feeling down that it had to be this way.

"If you're serious about using those weapons, then show me you've got what it takes to be a soldier" Guren ordered.

"Dammit, Yoichi" Yu said with gritted teeth. "Sorry, but you're going down!"

Both Yu and Shiho drew their weapons. Shiho's daggers were black and green (Like Yu's sword) and resembled large scimitars, except without the curved back. Yu's sword looked exactly like a well-made katana, except for the coloring. Dust kicked up as both boys prepared to fight. Both boys charged Yoichi just as Maisie made some progress with her fangs.

Maisie felt like her head was being ripped opened as her fangs were slowly retracting back. _I guess this is what happens when I really force my fangs to retract._

Once she was sure her fangs were gone, she resumed her attention to the fight. Shiho had charged Yoichi, but Yoichi had kicked him down while Yu struck from the back. Both fell through the air as Yu finally landed a cut, causing Yoichi's weapon to get knocked away.

"Yes!" Yu gloated.

"You idiot!" Guren shouted. "Don't let up! The demons not inside the weapon anymore, it's in his body!"

Gravity took hold of Yu as he began to fall and Shiho was ready to strike as he quickly sped towards Yoichi. "Don't do it! We can still save him!" Yu cried.

Shiho hesitated, causing him to barely touch Yoichi's neck as he held up his hands. Shiho and Yoichi landed on the ground while Yu slammed onto the ground.

"Interesting. You won't touch me because of the body I'm in?" Yoichi smirked.

"Yoichi! I know you're in there!" Yu shouted. "Don't let this stupid demon get the best of you. Snap out of it! We're supposed to kill the vampires together, remember?"

Maisie felt a shiver down her spine as she finally took in what that meant. _Both of them are hell bent on killing all vampires… Guren's protection might not be enough, even without Yoichi. Those two will kill me without a second thought._

Yoichi said nothing as he chuckled, summoned a dagger and began striking. Shinoa ran to Guren, her mind set.

"Lieutenant Colonel!" She shouted. "These boys are going to get themselves killed! They're not ready for this! Please don't make them kill Yoichi, he's their friend! At least send Maisie out with them!"

"Without a weapon? No chance."-He laughed-"You always act like you're so cool, but you've got a soft spot for these two problem students." Guren teased. "You've gotten attached, haven't you?"

"Lieutenant Colonel!" Shinoa gasped.

"Why don't you step in and kill him then?" Guren snapped. "That'll save the others from being racked with guilt."

Shinoa glared.

"Oh, I see. You've got no intension of getting your hands dirty either." Guren smirked. "Let me guess, you're just 'too cute' for this as well"

Maisie was stunned as this was the first time he had really punched down on Shinoa. While Maisie didn't know why Shinoa was sitting back, she couldn't complain. She was just as guilt for sitting out, vampire or not.

"Yoichi, get a hold of yourself!" Yu shouted. "You're strong enough to beat this thing!"

Yoichi smiled as he summoned another bow and an arrow to go with it. "It's too late." He aimed straight at Yu. "Now die"

"Do it" Yu said as he lowered his weapon. "I won't kill a comrade, but I won't abandon one either" Yoichi looked confused. "If Yoichi's still in there, then you won't be able to shoot me"

The demon started laughing. Maisie heard Yu's monologue through the demon's laughing.

"You and I are alike in that way. When you've watched your family die in front of you… There's no way you could ever kill a friend! " Yu shouted as he raised his sword and threw it behind him.

"Are you crazy?" Shiho asked.

"More like stupid" Maisie mumbled. Shinoa swiped her hand and a giant scythe colored green and black materialized in her hand as she ran towards Yu.

"You'll have to come back or shoot me! Snap out of it Yoichi!" Yu yelled. Maisie started to run towards him, but was grabbed by Guren before she could get far.

"No way. You're staying right here" Guren ordered

Maisie grit her teeth as she obeyed and watched the scene from behind him. Shinoa and Shiho stood beside Yu as the demon stopped laughing.

"Fool" The demon smiled as he aimed. "Die"

"Yoichi!" Guren snapped. "Are you gonna stay under that bed and watch your sister be killed or are you going to take charge and stop it?"

The demon froze in place.

"This is your chance to take control" Guren yelled. Maisie felt pity as she pieced together what must've happened: Yoichi's sister hid him like Maisie hid Hannah, except Yoichi watched and remembered his sister's death unlike Hannah, who was barely a year old. The demon began whimpered, as if in pain. Suddenly, Yoichi's eyes changed back and he released the attack the demon had been preparing. The attack was aimed for Yu's head, but missed by an inch, making Maisie sigh in relief. Yoichi threw down his weapon ran to Yu in tears. Yu held the crying boy, trying to hide his slight embarrassment.

"No way" Shinoa gasped.

"Did he just beat it?" Shiho asked, stunned.

"Yep, he really beat it" Maisie said, silently cursing. _Now I have to worry about three idiots killing me. Awesome_

Yu pat Yoichi on the head saying "That's enough. You did a good job"

"I… Shot at you" Yoichi cried.

Guren approached the two, causing Yoichi to stop crying. Guren smiled for a moment before kicking towards them, Yoichi dodging and Yu getting the blow. "You took way too long to get back!" He yelled. Yu held his stomach as he stumbled back a few steps.

"What the hell?" Yu mumbled. "But why would you kick me for that, Guren?"

"Yu, are you okay?" Yoichi worried as Yu crouched down, clutching his injured stomach.

Maisie approached the two and pat Yu on the back. "He'll be fine. Just got the wind knocked out of him" Suddenly, Yu passed out and Yoichi started freaking out even more. "Or maybe Guren did a number on him"

The colonel came from Yoichi and placed a foot on his back. Yoichi turned to face Guren, still crouched down. "You have a rare gift. The guilt you felt for not helping your sister was preventing you from living your life. But I think today you overcame that. Maybe now you'll be able to reach your full potential."

Yoichi looked confused.

"You have a new reason to live. From now on, your job is to protect the people that saved your life today." Guren advised. "Forget revenge. Don't get hung up on something so pointless."

Guren walked over and kicked Yu's head. "Same goes for you, idiot"

Yu looked up at Guren with a smug face. "Forget about your previous friends and loved ones."

"Huh? Don't be ridicu-"

"The Moon Demon Company's the only family you'll have now" Guren corrected. "You're gonna put us first, even before your own life. Got it?" The room was silent for a moment. "The past means nothing. It's the future that matters"

 _He's right… But I doubt Yu's going to listen_

"Stupid Guren" Yu mumbled.

"Hmph" Guren smirked as he put a hand through his hair. "Okay. Well, you've all got cursed gear and you almost worked like a team today." – Guren began walking to the elevator- "I suppose we should test you out on the front lines to see what you're really made of"

"Seriously?" Yu smiled.

"Once Maisie gets her cursed gear, that's right" Guren said with a smug look. "We've got intel that suggests vampires from the Kansai Region are planning on reclaiming Shinjuku. It's our job to investigate the area"

"We're finally gonna get to hunt vampires!" Yu celebrated.

"Shouldn't we have some more training, first?" Yoichi suggested.

"We don't even get a break after all this?" Shiho complained.

"Welcome to the army" Maisie joked as Shinoa giggled.

"I think these lazy kids are gonna be the death of me" Guren complained.

Maisie couldn't help but smile.

…

Once the group was out of the "Edge of Hell", Yu, Yoichi, Shiho and Shinoa went their separate ways while Maisie stayed back to talk to Guren.

"So what do I get?" Maisie asked upfront.

"What?" Guren responded confused.

"What do I get for helping you?" Maisie clarified. "I know I'm under protection, but what else?"

Guren smirked. "You'll get a weapon and a food supply. Anything you need, the military will provide in exchange for your loyalty"

"All right" Maisie nodded, biting back a question in the back of her head.

"And you'll see your sister tomorrow"

Maisie felt her heart skip a beat. She looked at Guren with nervousness in her gaze. "You're serious?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Guren sighed. "Your sister has been living in a compound for quite some time. If your guardian is alright with it, we'll have her moved while you're on tomorrow's mission. You'll see her before you leave with us tomorrow"

Maisie couldn't believe her ears. _I'll see her again… After eight years_

"Does she know I'm alive?" Maisie asked.

"We'll tell her tonight" Guren informed. "We already sent your supplies to your house, so there's no going back"

"Alright…" Maisie realized something as Guren began walking away. "Wait!" -Guren stopped and faced her- "One more question. How did you know who my sister was?"

Guren smirked. "After your sister was found, we went back to the scene to gather more information about you three days later. Your body was gone. At first we thought it was scavengers, but they would've taken your parent's bodies too. So General Hiragi suggested you were turned and told us to keep an eye out. Two years later, we began receiving people who said a vampire not associated with the fangs had rescued them. The rest you already know"

Maisie let it sink in as she slowly pieced everything together.

"She was waiting"

"What?" Maisie said, confused by his statement.

"When she turned six, she started asking about you. Told us she wanted to meet you. We told her you were probably dead, but she refused to accept it" Guren smiled. "She was hopeful and two years later, here you are"

Guren left Maisie with that as he finally walked away. Maisie stood on the sidewalk for the longest time before tears fell from her eyes.

 _Why am I crying… I should be happy_

 _What's wrong with me?_

The tears grew in number as she fell to her knees.

 _ **She waited for me**_


	6. Chapter 6

_Chapter 6: Days from a simpler time_

Maisie hadn't gotten home until midnight, her face stained with tears. She walked her way into Dustin's shop, ignoring the shelves and headed straight for the stairs in the back room.

"Who's there?" A familiar voice called as Maisie looked up the stairs.

"Dusty? It's Maisie" Maisie called. Suddenly, before Maisie could walk upstairs, Dustin ran down the stairs as fast as he could and embraced Maisie.

"Where the hell were you?!" Dustin snapped. "I thought something bad happened to you"

"I'm sorry" Maisie apologized as she returned the embrace.

Dustin chuckled as he let go, his face flushed. "I don't know what I'd do without you, birdy"

"You would be with the dracs" Maisie smirked.

"Y-yeah" Dustin smiled as he gestured upstairs. "Come on, something's bugging you. Why not tell me over dinner?"

Maisie chuckled. "Yeah. Dinner is from the military tonight"

…

"That explains the soldier at the door with a box full of blood bags" Dustin chuckled. Now the two were sitting at their small dinner table, in their pajamas. In front of Maisie was an opened boxed with her supplies and a mug full of blood that she was currently drinking. "I guess the military found out?"

"Yeah. I made a deal with them" Maisie informed as her eyes gazed around the apartment.

The small apartment was really an old break/storage room from an old store. The building wasn't as damaged during the invasion, so Dustin was able to convert it while he was living in a compound for survivors. The walls were unpainted with an old blanket stapled to the wall to cover the windows. A large mattress sat on the ground in the far corner with the blue blankets on top wrinkled. A small section of the room separated by a wall was the bathroom. On the other side of the room was a space consisting of pantries, countertops, and a sink. Next to this makeshift kitchen was the small, wooden table where the two were seated. According to Dustin, this shop was a book store before he transformed it into a pawn shop, where he sold things that were harder to find after the dracs takeover.

"They provide me with protection and supplies and in return they get my loyalty" Maisie explained, scared to mention the other part of their deal.

"And?" Dustin waited. "If that was the end of it, you wouldn't have reacted so-"

"My sister"

"What?" Dustin asked confused.

"T-they said I could see my little sister" Maisie choked out. "And that she would be living with us starting tomorrow"

Dustin was silent for a moment. "Maisie, that's amazing! You'll finally get to see her!"

"But-"

"Don't worry about sleeping arrangements; I can probably clear out that old storage room down stairs and give it to her" Dustin smiled. "I'll finally get to meet birdy's sist-" Dustin stopped as he noticed Maisie's expression. "What's wrong? Aren't you happy?"

"I- don't know" Maisie admitted. "She waited for me, wondering if I was alive. Meanwhile, I knew she was alive, but never approached her. I know nothing about her"

"So? You did that to protect her from-" –Dustin paused for a second- "Your situation. Don't be worried, birdy. You're seeing the sister you saved. Be happy. So what if you don't know what she's like? She doesn't know squat about you either. You'll both be learning, so stop worrying"

"But what if Hannah-"

"Nope!" Dustin interrupted. "No more worrying. Finish your dinner and get some sleep. I'll cleanup"

Maisie smiled as she chugged down the blood in her mug quickly. Once finished, she set down the cup and walked over to the large mattress, crawling in and falling asleep within seconds. Dustin smiled as he heard Maisie's breathing even out as he rose to clean her mug. Walking over to the sink, he watched as he turned on the water and the blood inside washed down the drain.

"You will never know how grateful I am to you" Dustin mumbled as he felt his heart skip a beat.

…

 **FIVE YEARS PRIOR**

Maisie glanced out of her hideout, groaning as the afternoon sun made her feel sick to her stomach. She waited as the afternoon sun slowly set, allowing the moon to take the sun's place.

"Finally" Maisie groaned as she stepped out of her hideout, stretching her aching body. Her hair was above her shoulders, messily cut and hair sticking up in all directions. Her outfit consisted of an old t-shirt with pants that were ripped up to her thighs. Her feet were bare, the bottoms scarred after walking barefoot for the past two years. She walked forward and looked around for any monsters or Dracs. "Coast clear"

Maisie gazed up at the moon for, what felt like, the thousandth time, enjoying the waning crescent in the sky. Her Hazel eyes showed little emotion as her stomach growled. _Time to find my dinner_

Maisie took a deep breath before she suddenly sprinted, looking for some kind of animal as a source of food. Her thirst grew as she spotted a couple squirrels playing in the rubble from a fallen building. Maisie quickly changed course, heading for the squirrels. The two rodents didn't notice her until one was grabbed by the throat, biting the hand trapping it. Maisie flinched as the rodent's teeth sunk into her flesh. She quickly sunk her fangs into the squirrel, draining it of blood before it could injure her anymore. The other squirrel tried to escape, only to be caught and drained seconds after its companion. Both animals lay on the ground, dead and drained, as Maisie cringed from the taste. _Animal blood is thin and gross… And it takes so much to make the pain stop, but it'll have to do_

Wiping the blood from her lip, she continued on searching for animals. That is, until she stumbled upon what looked like it used to be an indoor shopping strip. The once clear, glass roofs were now covered by vegetation, causing the inside of the building to be dark and humid during the day hours. The stores were abandoned and trashed, though nothing was really stolen except for food. The once lively shopping center was changed into a miserable livestock camp as people dressed as livestock slept in the entrance, hoping to avoid any monsters searching for escapees. The group of twenty people mostly consisted of teens with a few children. All of them were sleeping side-by-side, some even toppling others, as if they were trying to shrink down as small as they could.

Maisie felt pity as she slowly walked past them, hoping not to wake them. When she heard rustling, she turned to look at the group only to make eye contact with the only person awake, a fourteen-year-old boy with cropped caramel hair and big brown eyes. The boy had rings under his eyes, as if he had been up for hours. Maisie looked at him with shock as the boy's face contorted into a big grin.

"Hey everyone! We're sa-" Someone covered the boy's mouth before he yelled anymore.

"Dusty, What are thinking?!" The teenager behind him whispered harshly as he removed his hand.

The group slowly began waking up to the commotion as Maisie felt a squeezing in her chest.

"But look! It's another human! We're saved!" The boy- Dusty- yelled as he rose to his feet and danced around. "They told us there were no more humans!"

The littlest of children began smiling as everyone's eyes were on her. Dusty ran to Maisie and grabbed her hands, spinning her around in a circle while laughing. Maisie quickly snapped out of it as she pushed the boy away gently, holding her hand to her chest, while shaking. The boy looked at her with confusion as Maisie backed away.

"What's wrong?" Dusty asked. "Are you scared?"

He stepped closer only to have Maisie take two steps back. "Please stay away!" Maisie whispered, her voice cracking.

"Are you with the fangs?" One of the older teens asked.

"N-no, I just don't want to hurt you" Maisie responded. "I'm a vampire, but I'm not with the dracs"

The group slowly began glaring at her, one by one. Everyone except the boy in front of her. Dusty just smiled and reached out to her, grabbing one of her hands.

"If you're not with the fangs, then you must be a good guy!" Dusty grinned ear-to-ear. "Maybe you can save us!"

"I-"

"Dusty! The fangs are coming!" One of the older teens yelled. Maisie could hear the footsteps approaching. Just as she tried to leave, Dusty grabbed her sleeve.

"You'll come back, won't you?"

"The dracs will find me" Maisie explained quickly. "And I can't come during the day"

"Then take this" Dusty said as he pulled a thick piece of fabric from his shirt. "I stole it from the fangs, maybe it'll help"

Maisie took it hesitantly as Dusty ran to join the others. Maisie quickly sprinted out of the dracs field of vision, hiding behind a broken wall. She looked at the fabric band with suspicion. _It's got to be fake_

Maisie slipped the large band over her arm, tying it to ensure it wouldn't slip off. She flinched as she felt her hunger pains getting worse. _I'll test it out tomorrow. If it doesn't work, I'll go out at night. If it does, I'll see that boy again_.

…

After hunting for several hours, Maisie's stomach was still aching with hunger. Her prey, for whatever reason, was particularly aggressive today (Even more so than usual). By the time the sun rose, she was back at her hideout draining what was left of a large raccoon. Once she was finished, she looked at the shadows forming behind her, slowly realizing that the sun was rising. Her mind was screaming at her " _The boy was lying! Don't risk it!_ " while her curiosity was slowly overtaking her fear. To be on the safe side, she approached the door and stuck her hand in the light. She closed her eyes, preparing to feel sick to her stomach, but it never came. The gut wrenching sickness that came with being in the sun was replaced with a slight groggy feeling.

 _He wasn't lying_

Maisie stepped out of her hideout and let the sun hit her skin for the first time since she was turned. A smile crept on her face as she jumped in the air, fist bumping the air.

"I'm outside!" She cried happily. Suddenly the realization of her promise came to thought. _Guess I have a promise to fulfill_

Maisie walked outside, trying to remember where the boy was being kept. She noticed how most crumbled buildings look different when in the dark, though she couldn't name what made them different. She also noticed how there were more animals were out in the daytime too. The sudden change from dark to light startled Maisie even more than the fact that a human helped her.

It took her a while to find the shopping strip, but once she did, she could see everyone was awake and scared.

"You came!" A familiar voice cried. Maisie was knocked off her feet as she looked down to see Dusty hugging her as they fell to the ground. Dusty quickly got to his feet and grabbed Maisie by the hand as he dragged her inside the shopping center. Everyone's eyes were drawn to her immediately, but everyone had mixed reactions. The older children were glaring at her while the younger children were smiling, happy to meet someone new.

"Look, everyone! She came back!" Dusty smiled. The smaller children gathered around her, all saying their names at once. Maisie felt a little overwhelmed.

"What do you think you're doing, Dusty?!" An older teen scolded. "She told us she's a vampire, why would you invite her here?!"

"She doesn't look deadly" Dusty smiled. "I mean, she's scared of a bunch of little kids"

"That doesn't mean-"

"Uh, excuse me?" Maisie asked. The older teen looked at her. "Can you help me?"

The smaller kids had Maisie at their control as she didn't know what to say or do. The older teens couldn't help but laugh. The teen scolding Dusty held out his hand.

"Alright, maybe you can help us with something" Maisie carefully shook his hand as he introduced himself. "Kids call me Akio." –He put a hand on Dusty's head- "This here's Hiroaki, though he thinks the name 'Dusty' is cooler."

"Hey! Don't tell her that!" Dusty said, swatting Akio's hand away.

"Why, you embarrassed?" Akio teased. "Anyways, since you're a vampire, can you take some of the younger ones away from here?"

"Huh?"

"We know there are no humans left, but can you take them away from the fangs?" Akio pleaded. "Raise them away from here?"

"There are humans left" Maisie informed. "A whole city, actually"

This made everyone in the room gasp. Akio looked at her, distrust written all over his face. Dusty's face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"I told you!" Dusty cried. "She's our escape!"

"Can you please take the kids to the city?" Akio begged. "We'll do anything, even give you our blood"

"I don't-"  
"How do we know she won't kill them?" An older girl snapped. This caused a few of the younger kids to back away.

Akio thought for a minute before snapping his fingers. "Dusty!"

The boy looked at Akio with confusion.

"Bring Dusty with you and back, alive" Akio proposed. "Consider him a contract. If you don't bring him back, then we tell the fangs about you"

"Why don't you just leave?" Maisie asked. Before Akio could answer, a strangled cry was heard from afar. Maisie recognized it as a cry from the monsters that plagued the area.

"That's why" Akio answered. "If we step outside, one of the four horsemen of John with kill us"

"…So what makes you think I can keep them safe?" Maisie asked.

Akio was silent for a moment before he faced her once more. "Open your mouth"

"Huh?"

"Open your mouth"

Maisie reluctantly complied as she opened her mouth, revealing her pointed fangs.

"That's how." Akio replied. "You have power. Can't you use that power to help these kids?"

Maisie clenched her fists as she thought it over. Dusty smiled.

"Don't forget, I'll be with you to help!" Dusty smiled. All the kids laughed while Maisie looked terrified. Maisie considered her options, knowing her choice was obvious at that point.

"Alright" Maisie gave in. Dusty embraced the girl, knocking Maisie off balance.

"Everyone hurry. The fangs will be here soon." Akio ordered as the eight younger kids gathered around Maisie. Akio gave Maisie one last glare. "Those kids better make it to the city alive or the fangs will find you"

"A-alright" Maisie nodded. All the kids started cheering as Maisie tried to shush them with little success.

"Can you keep them quiet? I don't want to attract any attention" Maisie told Dusty. The boy smirked as he caught Maisie off guard by shouting.

"HEY!" Dusty yelled. All the kids looked at Dusty with wide eyes. "You guys need to be quiet. We can't let any monsters find us, okay?"

"Okay, Dusty!" All the kids whispered. Maisie's face turned blue as she slowly started regretted her decision.

 _We're so screwed._

The group of ten began walking away from the shopping strip, towards the city. Maisie had never realized how long her trip really was considering she could run faster. What she considered a thirty minute trip was a two hour (give or take) trip for humans. Thankfully the children were quiet for most of the trip. Once they were twenty minutes away, the children began making noises.

"Hey Dusty?" a little boy said, tugging Dusty's sleeve. "What's the city like?"

"I don't know" Dusty admitted. "But I bet there's a ton of humans! And better food!"

"What kind of food?" Another asked.

"Making fast food, like before the fangs takeover!" Dusty smiled. The children began laughing and smiling. Maisie heard a monster in the distance, but didn't think too much about it considering how they were to the city. "Maybe they have desserts! Enough to feed an army!"

The children cheered and Maisie stopped in her tracks as she heard crumbling from a nearby wrecked building. The children continued laughing as Maisie attempted to figure out what was making that sound. Suddenly, a strangled cry rang in everyone ear drums, making the children cry out.

"We need to run, now!" Maisie ordered. The kids began running, some slower than others. Their fear was realized as a building fifty feet away collapsed as a monster with a teal, crab like bottom and a white, clawed-like top smashed its way through the rubble. Its goal was the children running towards the city gate. The monster was running at the group at full speed. Maisie quickly ran to the back of the group and grabbed the hands of those slower; dragging them as the group quickly approached the city gate. Maisie felt her heart drop to her chest as she felt another presence enter the area. Just as the monster was about to pounce on Dusty and four other children, the beast was sliced in half. The monster collapsed to the ground, blood raining all around them. Maisie quickly ran to Dusty, grabbing his arm and running behind some rubble and leaving the children where they were.

"What are you-"

"Shhh" Maisie snapped as the two watched the children from afar. Men wearing black and green uniforms appeared from behind the monster holding weapons of the same color. "Soldiers from the city." Maisie explained. "They'll be safe. Let's head back"

Dusty nodded, following Maisie as the two stayed out of the soldier's sight, heading back to the shopping strip.

"So what do you do for fun?" Dusty asked with a big grin.

"Uh… Nothing really" Maisie admitted. "All I do is hunt and sleep… pretty much my life."

"Really? That sounds boring" Dusty chuckled. "How old are you?"

"Twelve" Maisie said, recalling how long it had been since someone asked that.

"Cool! I'm fourteen. Though my birthday is two months away!" Dusty smirked. "Do vampires have birthdays?"

"Not exactly" Maisie shrugged. "I don't think I'm like the other dracs. My eyes aren't red and I still age."

"That's weird" Dusty said with a confused look. "How do you get the blood you need?"

"I hunt?" Maisie said. "I don't drink human blood"

"That's why!" Dusty shouted. "All the other vampires drink human blood. Maybe that's why you're different"

"Really?" Maisie questioned. "What else do you know about the dracs?"

…

The two of them discussed theories, laughing like a couple of old friends, as they headed to the shopping strip. Some of the theories were serious, while others existed only to make Maisie and Dusty laughed. By the time the two reached their destination, it was the middle of the night.

"I mean, my name's cool and all, but Dusty was just perfect for me, ya know?" Dusty gloated.

"Yeah, I can see why" Maisie chuckled. She froze when she hear yelling coming from the compound.

"If I had a choice between Hiro-"

"Shut up" Maisie snapped. Dusty stopped in his tracks.

"Wha-"

Maisie covered his mouth as the two leaned against the wall of the entrance.

"WHERE ARE THEY?!" An angry voice yelled. The two peeked behind the wall and were shocked at what they saw. A group of vampires was surrounding an injured and beaten Akio, one holding him by his collar. One of the older children saw Dusty and made a notion with her hand. Dusty attempted to run, but Maisie held a death grip on him, her hand over his mouth as she pulled him beside her.

"Tell me who did this!" The vampire demanded as he slapped Akio. "Where are the children?!"

"Tell us and we'll let you live, livestock" Another one promised. Maisie could practically hear Akio smirking.

"Go to hell" Akio smirked. The vampire holding him had lost his patience. Maisie wished she could cover Dusty's ears from what came next. The vampire grabbed Akio's throat and ripped it out, blood going everywhere as the other children screamed. Dusty struggled to rip away from Maisie grip, tears rolling down his eyes.

"Aki-!" Dusty shouted. Maisie clamped her hand down harder, praying that the dracs didn't hear him. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. Maisie felt a chill down her spine and pushed Dusty out of way as a vamp grabbed her by the collar and held her high. His weapon in his other hand.

"Who are you?" The vampire demanded. "Did you take all our food?"

"They weren't food" Maisie growled. "They were people"

Her anger rose as she heard Dusty cry out.

"Kill him" The vampire ordered. Maisie, seeing no other options, sunk her fangs into his hand. The vampire cussed as Maisie grabbed his weapon from him. Before the vampire could react, Maisie quickly sliced his head off, immobilizing the vamp. The vampire holding Dusty quickly dropped him, realizing something wasn't right. Maisie dropped the weapon and ran to Dusty, who was still in shock. She quickly the boy onto her back and began running.

"Shit! She's a progenitor. We have to report back to Krul." She heard one of the vamps curse. Dusty was crying as Maisie carried him. She knew right away it was too risky to take him to the city, not the vamps wanting his head on a stake. She had to protect him.

…

Maisie didn't know what to do. Once the two reached her hideout, Dusty had cried himself to sleep. So far, all Dusty had done was cry, sleep, and eat. Maisie was running out of patience. Fortunately, Maisie was smarter than to force him to grieve quicker. Instead, she put her time into doing things that would benefit both of them. Her time was devoted to cleaning up her hideout and learning to improve it while Dusty would quietly wander around, offering his help every now and then. One of these repairs included hooking up the hide out's water supply to the local river, which turned out to be a huge success.

Soon, having Dusty around became normal for Maisie. Dusty returned to his happy self, the Dusty she met at the shopping strip. The change was sudden, but she embraced it. Maisie forgot how much time had passed (Enough that her hair reached her shoulders) since that fateful day.

"So the vampires have no emotions?" Maisie asked, out of the blue one day.

"Not really" Dusty said. He was sitting in front of a window, his body stretched out in a comfortable position with his arms behind his head. "Or they really don't care"

"I'm tempted to think it's the latter" Maisie chuckled. Maisie stopped laughing when she noticed all the rips and tears in Dustin's clothing (Which was a shirt and some shorts she had gotten for him one day while hunting). "Your clothes are ripped."

Dusty looked down at his ripped shirt and shorts and chuckled. "Yeah, I guess they are"

"I can get you some new ones next time I go hunting" Maisie offered.

"Wait!" Dusty smirked as he rose to his feet. "I wanna go with you"

"I don't think that's-"

"Nope! I'm going with you." Dusty smiled, interrupting Maisie. He grabbed her by the hand and dragged her outside. Luckily she had her arm band on or she would've been sick to her stomach. "Come on!"

"I'm going" Maisie sighed as the two headed towards the group of clustered, crumbling buildings. As the two walked, Maisie felt some resistance as she passed a dead tree.

Dusty noticed and started laughing. "Calm down, your hair's caught in the branches. Here, let me help"

Dusty quickly untangled the hair, a light blush dusting over his cheeks as he did so. Maisie was relived as he felt her hair give and she could move freely again.

"I need to cut my hair" Maisie sighed.

"Don't do that" Dusty smiled. "You look pretty with long hair"

"T-thanks" Maisie said with her cheeks glowing pink against her pale skin. "But it would get in the way"

"So put it up" Dusty suggested. "My mom used put her hair up all the time"

"I'll try it" Maisie shrugged as her blush slowly disappeared. The two continued walking, cracking jokes and making each other smile until they stumbled upon what appeared to be an old department store. Some of the racks were empty as Maisie got her clothes from places like this frequently.

"Pick out what you want, but don't forget we have to walk back with everything" Maisie reminded.

"Alright" Dusty said as he walked off into the crumbling store in search of clothing.

 _Might as well grab some clothes for myself while I'm here_ Maisie though as she headed towards what used to be the girl's clothing section.

"MAISIE!" Dusty cried out. Maisie dropped what she was doing and quickly rushed over to Dusty. As she was running, she was suddenly thrown against the wall, leaving a large crevice in the wall. Maisie quickly regained her focus, fear growing in her as she looked at the scene in front of her.

A group of three vampires were surrounding Dusty as one of them held him up by the collar of his shirt.

"Get away from him!" Maisie shouted as she nudged herself out of the wall, her fangs out and ready.

"Well, well. What do we have here?" A voice chuckled. Maisie quickly charged the vampires, unconcerned with the newcomer. She grabbed the wrist of the vampire holding Dusty and firmly twisted it until she practically hear the muscle ripping and the bone snapping. The vampire cursed as he dropped Dusty and jumped back. Maisie planted herself in front of Dusty as he caught his breath. She looked at the newcomer with a burning glare.

The newcomer was a man (That looked to be in his early 30's) with red bangs framing his face and dark brown hair in a long braid. His red eyes showed amusement as he smirked at Maisie. His outfit was different than the other, signaling to Maisie that his status was higher. His uniform, similar to a soldier, was mostly white except for his black boots and one of his sleeves. His sword sat on his hip, the purple handle mocking those who challenged him. The top buttons of his uniform were unbuttoned, showing a bit of his chest. The smirk on his face annoyed Maisie to no end as she narrowed her eyes.

"Looks like the others were right" He smirked.

"Right about what?" Maisie growled.

He chuckled. "About you. Let me introduce myself; I am Crowley Eusford. I was sent because a while back one of my squads reported that a female that 'smelled of Ferid' stole a group of livestock"

"Ferid?"

"Humans would say he's 'high in command'" Crowley explained.

 _Ah, that makes sense_ Maisie thought. _Despite appearing cocky, it seems like he wants me to understand. But why?_

"Now I'm here to interrogate you" Crowley said with a smirk.

"There's not much you can do about the kids" Maisie said with a glare. "They're all in the city now"

"Then what's that boy?" Crowley questioned. "You're not a complete vampire, so he can't be your food supply"

"'Complete'? What the hell does that mean?" Maisie snapped.

"Maisie" Dusty whispered. "They drink human blood. I think it's why their eyes are red"

Maisie realized what he was talking about, also realizing that if she ever drank human blood, she would be like him.

"Quit playing games. If our suspicions are correct, you're a noble and should be fighting with us" Crowley said, extending his arms. "How long have you been alone? Come join your brethren where you belong"

" _So the vampires have no emotions?"_

" _Not really. Or they really don't care"_

 _He has to be acting_ Maisie gathered as she strong. Dusty was looking at her, worried that she would actually go.

"Go to hell" Maisie growled. Crowley appeared before her in seconds, grabbing her by the throat. Crowley smirked.

"I didn't want to do this, but my orders were to convince you or send a message" Crowley sighed. Maisie felt two people dash in from shadows and grab Dusty. All Maisie could do was listen in horror as the two vampire behind her sunk their fangs into Dusty's neck before he could scream.

"Maisie-!" Dusty cried out as he was drained. Maisie clawed at the hand on her throat with all her strength, ripping through his gloves and drawing blood.

"Please stop" Maisie begged as Crowley tightened his grip, crushing her windpipe. "Leave Dusty alone"

After what seemed like forever, Crowley chuckled. "Alright, that's enough. We're supposed to send a message, not kill anyone"

Maisie heard Dusty's body fall to the ground as Crowley spoke to her, her throat still losing air.

"Next time we see each other, I'm required to take you by force." Crowley smirked. "Krul said to consider this your final warning"

Crowley let go and Maisie collapsed onto the ground, gasping as the other vampires stepped over her. Once she got over the shock, Maisie crawled over to Dusty, who was unconscious with blood running down his neck. Maisie felt tears fall down her cheeks as she used all her strength to pick him up bridal style and walk back to the hideout.

Once at the hideout night had already arrived. Maisie walked into the hideout and set Dusty on her mattress. She could feel him stir as he opened his eyes.

"Maisie… Why are you crying..?" Dusty asked with a groggy voice.

"I'm sorry" Maisie whimpered as she broke down in tears.

"Tell me… What's wrong…?" Dusty asked, getting no answer in return.

…

The next morning, Dusty could tell something was on Maisie. Her silence was practically screaming _SOMETHING IS WRONG._ Dusty left it alone until Maisie came back from hunting with food for him (Some fruit like always).

"Hey Maisie-"

"You can't stay here"

Dusty couldn't believe his ears. "What are you-"

"You're not stupid. You know what I said" Maisie snapped. "Tonight I'm leaving you at the gate to the city"

"Don't I get a say in this?!" Dusty shouted. "I'm perfectly fine here, so why-"

"CAN YOU JUST DO THIS ONE THING FOR ME?!" Maisie yelled, tears blurring in her eyes. "I can't protect you anymore, not with the fangs after me. I'm not letting you get hurt again."

Dusty remained quiet.

"Tonight I'm leaving you at the gate" Maisie explained. "Tell them your name is Dustin O'Connors and that you escaped from one of the colonies outside of the walls. Everything else is up to you"

The room was silent for a while before Dusty finally answered with a frustrated "Alright"

…

The rest of the day was silent as both refused to speak to each other while Dustin prepared for his departure. When night fell, both were silent as they walked to the city gate. Once they reached the gate, Maisie could feel a squeezing feeling in her chest.

"Dusty I-" Maisie didn't finish as he embraced her without another word.

"It's alright. I understand" Dusty whispered.

"Doesn't make it any easier" Maisie choked out as she returned the embrace.

"I will find you again. I promise" Dusty said as he gave one last squeeze before releasing her.

Maisie said nothing as she ran off, leaving Dusty in front of the gate.

"Hey! Someone help!" Dusty screamed up the gate. He could see night guards already opening the gate as he gulped. Once the gate was open, a soldier walked up to him.

"What's your name, kid?" He asked as other soldiers joined him.

"D-Dustin O'Connor" Dusty said hesitantly. "I was rescued"

"By who?"

Dusty considered this for a second before answering. "A vampire against the fangs. She rescued me"

The other soldiers looked at him with disbelief. "What was their name?"

Dusty smirked as an idea popped into his head. "The others called her the 'blood bird'"

…

 **Two Years Later**

Maisie sighed as she quickly and quietly walked through the city. Her appearance screamed suspicious as she had a hood over her head and was wearing sunglasses. She could feel everyone's eyes on her as she walked past everyone.

 _Damn it. Of all colors, why did vampires have to get the red eyes?_ Maisie mentally cursed.

Her attention was taken as she bumped into someone. Not enough that they fell, but enough for her to notice. When she looked up, she saw soldiers in green and black uniforms.

"S-sorry" Maisie apologized, making sure to hide her fangs.

"It's alright" The soldier smiled as she walked passed him. Just as she was leaving, the soldier noticed something and called out. "Hey, aren't you supposed to be in school?"

 _Shit_ Maisie cursed mentally as she began running.

"Hey! Get back here!" The soldier cried. Maisie ran down the street, passing confused school kids.

 _I can't escape. I just have to-_ Maisie's plan was interrupted as someone grabbed her hand and spun her around so that she was in front of her captor.

"What are you-"

"Shh. Just go along with me and you'll be fine" Her captor insured. Maisie was suspicious, but nodded as the soldier approached the two.

"Hey! Why did you run away?" the soldier questioned, breathing heavy.

"Sorry about my girlfriend, sir!" Her captor, who was definitely a boy, answered. "She's transferring out of a survivor compound and wanted to meet me. Poor thing got a little lost"

"Alright. I can contact her compound if you want" The soldier offered.

"No worries. I was just heading there now." The boy assured. "Thank you officer"

"No problem" The soldier said as he turned the other way and walked off. The boy, still holding Maisie's hand, dragged to her into a dark alley.

"What are you-" Maisie snapped as she pulled her hand out of her grip.

"How are you doing, birdy?" The boy smiled. Now that they were alone, Maisie could see his features more clearly. He had light hair and big eyes. Maisie guessed his age to be around sixteen to seventeen.

"Birdy?" Maisie questioned.

"You don't remember?" The boy asked. "I hoped I wouldn't be that easy to forget"

Maisie felt her gears turn as she slowly put the pieces together.

"What would Akio say?" The boy smiled. Maisie heart began racing as one name left her lips, uncertain.

" **Dusty…?** "

"Finally. The famous 'blood bird' remembers me" Dusty said as he opened his arms. Maisie began tearing up as she embraced her old friend.

"I'm sorry" Maisie whimpered.

"It's alright" Dusty smiled softly. "I told you I'd find you someday. I promised, didn't I?"


	7. Chapter 7

_Chapter 7: A rude awakening_

A hand on her shoulder woke Maisie from her dream-less sleep. Maisie turned to find Dustin, half-asleep, next to her. This wasn't a surprise as the two usually slept in the same bed (Maisie saw it as a way to save space), but usually kept their distance.

"Morning" Maisie smiled as she chuckled at Dustin's hair, which looked like a bird's nest. She climbed out of the blankets and stretched. Dustin sat up, rubbing the sand from his eyes. "We have things to do before I have to leave"

"Like what?" Dustin yawned. Maisie sighed, counting down from five in her head.

 _Five_

 _Four_

 _Three_

 _Two…_

"Aw crap! Your sister!" Dustin shouted as he scrambled off of the mattress and ran downstairs.

 _One._ Maisie chuckled. _Definitely not a morning person._

Her attention shifted to the box sitting on the table from the night before. She opened the box once more, examining its contents more closely this time. In the upper right corner were two sets of uniforms, black and green in color. The bottom half of the box was empty with the imprint of what was there. Maisie remembered the blood bags had been there, but assumed Dustin must have put them away. On the upper left was a pair of boots, black in color. Maisie grabbed one of the uniforms and walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. The uniform consisted of a black long sleeved shirt with green accents on the cuffs and shoulder epaulettes. At her collar was a bow, soft red in color that Maisie would've preferred to burn due to its itchy nature. Maisie's skirt hit half way on her thigh, allowing her thin shorts to be visible. The shorts ended a few inches above the knee while her boots began a few inches below the knee. The white gloves were the most appealing to Maisie as they fit snuggly on her hands with no problem.

 _How the hell did they get my sizes?_ Maisie thought with a shiver. She walked out of the bathroom just in time to see Dustin entering the room. A light blush appeared on his cheeks as he whistled flirtatiously.

"Trying to outshine the competition?" Dustin joked. "The bow is a bit too much"

"I know. It itches" Maisie sighed as she undid the bow, placing it in her pocket.

"Much better" Dustin smiled, giving her two thumbs-up. His face twisted in confusion as he realized something. "They didn't give you a weapon?"

"You're right" Maisie realized. "Maybe they'll give it to me when they get here?"

Dustin shrugged. "You've got some time. Why don't you pack up while I clear the store room downstairs?"

"I'll help. That store room's older than me"

…

The silence of early morning was interrupted as a large army truck drove down the cracked cement road. In the back of the truck was a little girl with chocolate brown hair and pale chartreuse green eyes. Her hair stopped just above her shoulders in thin streaks, her hair in the front parted towards her left side. Across from her was Guren, smirking as the girl fiddled with her hands. Beside Guren was a small box, no bigger than a pasta box.

"So what's it like?" Guren asked. The girl looked up, her expression showing confusion.

"Sorry?"

"What's it like?" Guren repeated. "Meeting your dead sister?"

"She's not dead, sir" The girl responded timidly.

"That's right. She's alive." Guren chuckled. "How does it feel to finally meet her?"

She didn't answer right away. "Strange, sir. Very strange"

…

Maisie practically froze when she heard the truck outside pull up.

"They're here" Maisie said, still in shock.

"What?!" Dustin shouted as he set down a pile of blankets. "I'm not even dressed! Give me a minute!"

Dustin ran out of the store room and up the stairs. Maisie walked out of the now-empty storeroom and to the counter where she placed a large box. Maisie snapped out of her trance when she heard Dustin rush down the stairs, still pulling on his shirt. Just as Dustin got to the counter, the store's door opened revealing Guren holding a small box.

"Morning soldier" Guren smirked. Maisie groaned.

"Morning" Maisie replied, her tone heavy with sarcasm. A little girl walked into the shop, standing next to Guren. Maisie's attention was directed at the girl, who was fiddling with her hands and staring at the ground. Maisie was suddenly glad she remembered to put her contacts in as the girl made eye contact with her. The familiar pale green eyes made Maisie's heart skip a beat as she approached the girl.

"Is this…?" Maisie asked Guren, already knowing the answer.

"Hannah Kennan" Guren smirked. "Meet the person who saved your life eight years ago, Melissa O'Connor. Your older sister"

Maisie didn't know what emotion she wanted to show first; her happiness or her sorrow, her fear or her anticipation. "Do you still have that blanket?" Maisie asked, still unsure.

"My baby blanket?" The girl, Hannah, asked back. Maisie nodded. "Yeah, it's in my bag"

"I'm glad you kept it." Maisie smiled, holding back tears. Guren stepped back as he let the two sisters have their space. "Mom worked hard on it"

 _I don't want to rush her or spook her. I'm probably just a stranger to her_

"Excuse me, Melissa" Hannah said in a tone that reminded Maisie that she was only eight-years-old.

"Please, call me Maisie." Maisie gently corrected.

Hannah nodded. "You look sad, Maisie. Do you need a hug?"

"Yes, that would be nice" Maisie chuckled. The two embraced for a moment as felt her heart swell in her chest. "I'm so glad you're safe" Maisie said as she ended the hug. "Anyways, I have to go for a little while, so Dustin will help you set up your room"

"Okay" Hannah nodded, looking slightly uncomfortable with the idea of being with a stranger for the next few hours. Dustin smiled at her as he approached Maisie with a small black bag.

"Thanks Dustin" Maisie smiled as she faced Guren. Guren signaled for her to follow him as he walked out of the shop, leaving Dustin to handle Hannah and her belongings. Once the two were outside, Guren held out the before-mentioned box out to Maisie. "What is it?" Maisie questioned.

"Your weapon" Guren said with annoyance. "We were experimenting with some vampire weapons for the past year and this is what we got."

Maisie took the box and opened it. Inside was a small, red staff with a blade. The staff was no bigger than her palm and looked almost like a doll accessory. "Are you joking?" Maisie snapped.

"Don't let that tiny thing fool you. Our lab tried to make it as similar to our cursed gears as possible" Guren explained.

Maisie threw the box aside, holding the tiny blade. She held the weapon as if it were full size. "What do I do?"

"Let it drink your blood" Guren instructed.

"Wait, what-" Maisie was interrupted as she felt a prick in her palm. She could feel the blade draining her blood as flames surrounding her hand and her weapon suddenly grew. The full-sized weapon was a few inches taller than her. The handle was black with supposedly decorative red vines with thorns adorning it. The blade itself was shaped like a bat wing, the two sharpest ends tinted red to match the vines on the handle. Maisie swung the blade around, letting her arms adjust to the weight. "So, how does it work?"

"It'll look like a cursed gear, but without the demon" Guren explained. "Vampire noble weapons require the blood of the user. The more blood you offer it, the stronger it gets"

"That means I'll need to drink more blood" Maisie realized. "I think I can manage"

She placed the weapon in her other hand while she examined the cut on her hand. The second the weapon touched her other hand, it was engulfed in heatless flames and had shrunken back to its miniature size.

"That's convenient" Maisie smirked. "So when am I meeting the others?"

"You're not a part of their squad. You'll be with me and some other officers" Guren said with a smug grin.

 _Dammit. More vampire-hating officers I have to play 'kill the bloodsuckers' with_

"Whatever" Maisie groaned as she tucked her weapon into her shirt. Guren began walking towards the car and Maisie followed. Before she got in the car, she looked back and saw Dustin and Hannah, waving at her from the front of the store. "I'll be back soon! I'll make it up to you both when I get back!" She shouted.

Hannah gave her older sister a small smile while Dustin had a big goofy grin. Maisie chuckled at his expression as she climbed into the back of the military truck, following Guren as she closed the doors. The two sat across from each other on the car's benches in silence for a few moments before Maisie cleared her throat.

"So what's the plan?" Maisie questioned.

"We'll be heading to Shinjuku" Guren explained. "On our way, you'll be going on a mission with me to exterminate some vamps along the way"

"Lovely" Maisie sighed as she felt herself falling asleep.

…

 _Maisie was surrounded in darkness. On her neck she could feel the heavy weight of a metal collar chained to the darkness behind her._

" _What's going on?" Maisie questioned. When she turned to look at her surroundings, a hand grabbed her chin._

" _What do we have here?" The voice sent chills down her spine as her vision showed purple hair and a wicked smile. "Such rare coloring. Perhaps I should keep this one as a pet"_

" _Come join your brethren, Maisie" Another familiar voice said behind her._

Bite his hand and end the dream _Maisie thought as she bite the hand holding her chin. Unlike the previous dreams where this action had woken her up, the hand only tightened its hold. If this wasn't a dream, Maisie would've been in pain._

" _Not this time, little lamb" The voice laughed. "Queen Krul wants you. And when the queen wants something, she gets it"_

" _No way in hell" Maisie said, releasing her bite. For a second, she forgot she was in a dream._

" _You don't have a choice" He laughed as he threw her head to the side, causing her metal collar to tighten against her neck._

" _Birdy?" Dustin's voice broke through._

" _Dusty, get out of here!" Maisie shouted as she turned to face him. Dustin looked at her with tear-filled eyes as he walked up to her. "What the hell are you-"_

 _Maisie froze as Dustin knelt down to her level and placed a gentle kiss on her cheek._

" _Wake up"_

…

"Maisie, wake up" Guren's voice broke through Maisie's dream as she opened her eyes.

"How long was I out?" Maisie asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Well now it's night time" Guren snapped. "I thought vampires didn't sleep"

"They don't?" Maisie questioned.

"Nevermind" Guren brushed off. "Just focus on your mission"

Maisie recalled what happened in her dream and cleared her throat. "Speaking of my mission"

"What is it?" Guren asked.

"If anything happens to me, I want your word that you'll protect Dusty and Hannah" Maisie said, feeling a weight in her chest.

"Where is this coming from?" Guren asked with a smirk. "Worried about your boyfriend?"

"He's not my boyfriend" Maisie corrected. "Besides, he knows I'm a vampire. I'm surprised he's still friends with me"

"He seems like he wants to be more than friends" Guren teased, glancing at the rose-gold ring on Maisie's ring finger.

"Stop" Maisie growled. "I'm being serious. If I get killed or captured, do you swear to protect them with your life?"

Guren was silent for a moment before answering. "Consider it done"

"Thank you" Maisie sighed as she looked at the ring on her finger.

 _We've known each other for at least three years. There's no way he would think that way about me._ Maisie face began turning pink. _I mean, I'm a vampire. Why would he have any interest in me? He's a special case so I guess it's not impossible, but still-_

"We're here" Guren announced, giving Maisie a break from her thoughts. The car stopped just as Guren opened the doors, Maisie following right behind him. Looking around was an unfamiliar terrain of crumpled buildings. She knew the landed outside the spell-bound wall was untouched, but she never expected this kind of damage. They were about 90 miles away from the spell bound wall. Maisie only went, at most, seven miles away from the wall, where the four horsemen of John were most common.

 _Well this is new_ Maisie thought as she looked around. Guren walked to the front of the car where an identical vehicle was parked with four soldiers standing in front of it. The driver of Maisie's car, who was also a soldier, stepped out to join the group.

"Okay men. This is a fairly simple vampire extermination mission." Guren explained. "Your job is clear out a small vampire nest with about five low-ranking bloodsuckers. I'll be scoping out the area."

"But sir, don't we need only five members?" One of the soldiers asked, referring to Maisie.

"Usually I would say yes, but this one's here to learn the ropes." Guren said, patting Maisie on the soldier. "If she goes off on her own, don't look for her. Her life is her responsibility, not yours."

"Yes sir!" All the soldiers said with respect. The soldiers began to make their way towards the vampire nest and Maisie followed. As the group discussed strategies, Maisie began daydreaming as she allowed random thoughts to come to mind.

"…We should aim for the vampire's hearts. If we cut them out, it will kill the vampire-"

"No it won't" Maisie interrupted one of the soldiers. "If you remove the heart, the vampire starts to turn into a demon"

"How do you know for sure?" One of the officers snapped.

"Because it's something they go over in high school?" Maisie returned the attitude.

"Alright then how do you kill a vampire?" The officer said with a pompous tone.

"You destroy its head. Best advice I can give is to cut off its head and smash it with your weapons" Maisie offered.

"Why destroy?" Another asked.

"Because they can still move without their head" Maisie explained. "And one bullet will only piss them off. Trust me, I've tried"

Maisie left the conversation after that, letting the others come up with whatever nonsense plan. Soon the group was close to the vampire nest, which was an old convenience store shielded with years of vegetation. Maisie immediately knew something was off as the livestock inside were cowering. One was clutching their neck, hands covered in crimson. She could smell the faded iron scent that came with every vampire (Even she had that scent, but it was faint because she didn't attack anyone).

 _Shit. There's a drac outside._ "Stand back!" Maisie shouted as she ran through the soldiers, grabbing her weapon from her shirt.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" A soldier yelled.

"Drink my blood" She whispered as she felt her weapon pierce her skin and begin to drink as it transformed. She swung her weapon at the shadows lurking beside the building and wasn't surprised when she saw said shadow jump away.

The hooded vampire looked shocked when he came face to face with Maisie. She could practically see what little color he had drain out of his face. _This happened before. Any common vampires I come into contact with grow pale at the sight of me. But why?_ Maisie questioned. _Maybe it's something about my scent_

"I'll get the dracs behind the building. You guys get rid of the rest and free the hostages!" Maisie ordered as she chased the vampire to behind the building. She quickly chopped off the vampire's head and crushed it beneath her feet. The vampire's body fell limp, blood pooling around the body. _I guess my advice was useless to normal people. Apparently it's harder to crush a head than I thought._

"That was very impressive" A familiar voice chuckled. Maisie felt her blood run cold. "I guess it's not surprising, considering you're a 14th progenitor"

Maisie turned around to see the figure from her nightmares, only he wasn't blurred from memory loss. He was real and standing in front of Maisie with that horrifying smile. She felt her emotions run wild as she struggled to stand.

"Hello my little pet. It's been a while, hasn't it?" He laughed. "The last time I saw you, I thought you were dead. You could imagine my surprise when Krul called me in to complain about siring another vampire"

He stepped closer, allowing the moonlight to reflect his red eyes. Maisie prepared her weapon. "Stay back!"

"Feisty, aren't we?" He laughed. "I am your sire; seven progenitor Ferid Bathory. You should be bowing"

"I should be cutting off your head." Maisie snapped.

"Ah, ah! I'm not allowed to hurt you" Ferid smirked, wagging his finger. "Krul would like to welcome you as one of us, a progenitor by my side. Considering your abilities, I'm surprised she didn't catch you sooner"

"My abilities?" Maisie questioned. Ferid looked pleased at her response.

"Of course, my dear." Ferid encouraged. "Not many can survive without human blood for so long. Not to mention your fighting skills are admirable for someone of your rank"

"You're lying! You'd just kill me!" Maisie growled.

"You don't believe me? Oh dear." Ferid sighed. He quickly snapped his fingers in realization. "You want living proof? There's a vampire just like you that goes by the name Mikaela Hyakuya. If you don't believe me, see for yourself."

"Why are speaking to me?" Maisie said, her voice slightly trembling.

"I wanted to get to know you before Krul got her hands on you" Ferid chuckled. "I have orders to seize you on sight. Whether you like it or not, you're one of us. And Krul won't take no for an answer"

Before Maisie could speak, Ferid was already in front of her, holding her chin in a tight grip.

"We will meet again, my little pet" Ferid laughed as he let go of Maisie's chin and ran off, leaving her to come to grips with reality.

"Is everything clear?" a soldier's voice yelled, snapping Maisie out of her trance.

"Yeah! No dracs left back here!" She shouted back.

"Come on! We're heading back!"

"Alright!" Maisie said as she fell to her knees.

…

Maisie looked on the hostages were loaded onto a military van, the group of soldiers from before patching up any injuries. Maisie smiled at the sight of families happily crying together while they piled onto the van, knowing they were safe. She walked into her own van and sat on the bench, thinking about what Ferid had told her.

" _Krul would like to welcome you as one of us, a progenitor by my side"_

 _By his side… was he just lying?_ Maisie found herself questioning for the first time in a long time if she should go join the dracs. _He's offering me something Guren can't give me. But I can't leave Dustin and Hannah_

 _I already told Guren what happened. What is he going to do?_

"Maisie" Guren's voice interrupted her thoughts.

 _Speak of the devil and he shall appear_

"What do you need?" Maisie replied. Guren sat across from her with a serious look in her eyes.

"If you get captured, remember where you're loyalties lies. We'll protect your sister and friend, but you can't reveal anything vital, which is why we've kept you in the dark til now" Guren explained.

"So anything I was told…"

"Wasn't important. Or at least not dangerous for the future of humanity" Guren sighed. "That being said, if what this noble said is true, you are to gather intel for as long as you possibly can. When we get you back, you will reveal everything you have learned, whether it is useful or not. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir" Maisie nodded.

"Good" Guren smirked. "You supposed to be filled in on this yesterday, but better late than never"

 _Of course he would say that_

"Alright everyone! Start heading out!" Guren yelled as he exited the truck. Maisie sighed as her earlier thoughts came rolling back.

" **At least I know my place"**


	8. Chapter 8

_Chapter 8: Second thoughts_

"What are we waiting for?" Maisie complained. "The dracs have already started their attacks."

"We're waiting for back-up" Guren snapped as he held a scope to his eye. "Be quiet"

Maisie sighed as the wind brushed her hair out of place, revealing one of her ears. She quickly covered it once more as she looked down at the scene in front of her. The pair was on top of an old hospital, watching the battle from afar. Maisie's stomach curled at the sight of dead soldiers, their necks pierced and drained, among the untouched debris from eight years ago. She took some satisfaction in the sight of empty vampire uniforms scattered everywhere with the smell of ash heavy in the air.

"The vampires aren't pullin' any punches" Guren commented. "Now which one of them is the commander?"

While Guren was searching the battlefield, Maisie's eyes widened as she saw her teacher walk up the stairs, onto the roof.

"Oh! Mrs.-" Maisie trailed off as she couldn't remember her teacher's name.

"Sayuri" She responded with a smile.

"Right" Maisie blushed. "Are you here to help, Ms. Sayuri?"  
"Yep. I'm part of Lieutenant Colonel Guren's squad" Sayuri smiled.

"What? You gotta be kidding" Guren said with awe. "He can see me from that far away?"

"Who?" Maisie questioned.

"Who do you think?" Guren smirked.

"You don't seem too concerned about the fight, Lieutenant Colonel" Sayuri commented.

"It's not like I'm slacking off up here, Sayuri" Guren replied with a snarky attitude.

"You're not?" Maisie chuckled. "Seems like slacking to me"

"Piss off" Guren snapped. "I'm keeping an eye on the vampire commander and enemy troop movements in case the bastards decide to target this outpost as well"

Maisie froze as a metallic scent filled her nostrils. "Sayuri! Watch out!"

Just as Sayuri turned, a vampire jumped onto to the building, sword in hand, and charged towards her. Maisie quickly grabbed her weapon only to stop when some new scents entered the area. A flash of red hair ran past Sayuri and killed the vampire with one punch and a flash of green light. Maisie relaxed as she smelled the vampire's scent turn to ash in the wind.

"Took you long enough, Mito" Guren snapped.

Maisie looked at the girl before her. She looked to be Sayuri's age, early twenty's, with bright red hair and fierce royal purple eyes. Instead of the usual female uniform, she wore trousers. Maisie guessed from the marks on her uniform that she was a colonel.

"Are you saying I'm late?" Mito snapped with a proud attitude. "You're the one who called me here on such short notice. So, what's with the big hurry? And who's the newbie?"

A girl with black hair and brown eyes walked up to Mito and spoke before Maisie could introduce herself. "Guren, sir. We've returned from our mission"

"It looks like things are going to hell fast" An older male with spiky blond hair and a goatee commented as he entered the conversation. "What do you propose we do about it? There's no way the extermination unit can defeat so many of them. Can they?"

"Great. The whole squad's finally here" Guren announced. "Before anything else, Maisie over there will be our plus one. She does things on her own, so focus on our squad and leave her out of it"

 _I feel so much better_ Maisie thought sarcastically as Sayuri offered a supportive hand on her shoulder.

"Shigure. How's Yu's team doin'?" Guren asked. The girl with black hair, Shigure, spoke up.

"They've managed to free all of the civilians. They've moved on to Shinjuku" Shigure reported.

"Well done" Guren smirked. Maisie had to admit she was impressed. "They'll be a good addition to the reinforcement team. The battle field is the best place to grow stronger, as long as you don't end up dead."

"Great advice as always" Maisie muttered, earning a laugh from Sayuri. Guren jumped off the ledge he was standing on and faced the group.

"Okay, it's time we join this fight" Guren announced as he walked past the group. "Pretty sure I know where to find the vampire commander. This might be over if we take the leader's head."

 _I have a bad feeling about this_ Maisie thought as she and the rest of the group followed Guren. Just as the group made it to ground level, it had started raining.

 _Damn it. I can't smell anything with this stupid rain!_ Maisie rubbed her nose with anger before she was pushed to the ground.

"What the hell are you-" Maisie trailed off as she saw Mito and the remains of a vampire's uniform in front of her.

"Pay attention, kid" Mito snapped.

"R-right" Maisie said, still in shock. "Thanks"

Mito's response was interrupted as Guren struck down a trio of vampires with one swing of his sword, kicking up debris and vampire limbs. Maisie's eyes widened as the dust settled and she made eye contact with a blond vampire with blue eyes. Her heart stopped.

" _You want living proof? There's a vampire just like you that goes by the name Mikaela Hyakuya"_

 _He's wearing vampire clothing… But he has blue eyes. Is this who Ferid was talking about?_ Maisie wondered as she got to her feet. Maisie ran to Guren, pulling out her weapon. She felt the weapon make a cut in her hand, drawing blood as it transformed. Guren pointed his sword at the boy.

"Well, dammit. I didn't kill the commander after all" Guren cursed under his breath.

"Impressive" A familiar voice said with a chuckle. Maisie knew who it was right away and prepared her weapon. "That attack took down a whole squadron of our men"

"Ferid" Maisie growled.

"I told you we'd meet again, my little pet" Ferid purred.

Maisie turned to Guren as the vampires started arriving in greater numbers. "What's the plan, Guren?"

"Killing the commander should be top priority, if we're not dead" Guren chuckled.

"That's helpful" Maisie said as she rolled her eyes. "First battle and I'm already staring death in the face"

Maisie could sense the number of soldiers behind her growing as the rain poured down on the battlefield.

"Let me ask you somethin'" Guren shouted at the opposing vampires. "Do you really like the taste of human blood? Or is this a twisted reenactment of the Last Supper?"

"Watch it, pal" Maisie growled. _Don't know about these freaks, but blood isn't exact pleasant to drink_

"You wanna say something?" Guren teased as a black aura began escaping from his sword.

"Nope, just watching" Maisie sighed. Guren looked amused.

"Lend me your power" Guren muttered "Demon blade: Mahiru-no-yo"

Maisie could feel her fangs begging for freedom at the mention of a battle, but she forced them back.

"Don't hold back!" Guren shouted. "This is the fight that you've been training for. Protect this line. Kill every one of 'em"

Guren charged with his sword, wiping out several vampires with one swing. Maisie handled any vampires that tried to escape his attack, killing them with a strike from her blade. The soldiers behind her also battled, with Guren's squad having the most success. One vampire attempted to attack Guren from behind, but Maisie's weapon made quick work of him. Guren and Sayuri went back to back while Maisie continued fighting. She couldn't hear what they were saying, only the hissing of vampires and the rain beating down on her head. When Guren and Sayuri separated, their plan went into action.

"Maisie!" Guren shouted as Maisie sent another fang to its grave. "You're with me!"

"You got it!" Maisie yelled as she quickly followed Guren and ran towards the vampire commanders. Maisie kept her guard up as she saw the blonde vampire carrying a sword. She could see thorns from the base of his sword crawling up his arm. The blonde and Guren clashed swords just as the rain began to let up. Maisie immediately fought off any vampires that would try to get the upper hand on Guren.

 _They just keep coming!_ Maisie thought as her body began to ache. She could already sense a vampire behind her, aiming its weapon, until a sudden explosion saved her life. Maisie was knocked to the ground, the two vampires she was fighting dead from the blast. She used her blade to cover herself as the crumbling building near her collapsed, leaving a giant dust cloud. When she opened her eyes, Guren was standing in of the collapsed building with his signature smirk. He turned to face the vampire behind him as Maisie rose to her feet.

"Landing a curse on your head" Guren lectured with a _tsk_ noise. "I thought that you'd be faster."

"I evaded the blast" The blonde snapped. "And besides, do you really think old school spell craft works on vampires?"

"Mika, just as I excepted" Ferid chuckled as he walked onto a piece of rubble. "Tremendous power and overconfidence. If you're not careful, that arrogance will get the rug pulled out from under you. Do you need a hand?"

"What are you getting at?" The blonde, Mika, snapped. "There's no way I'll lose against him"

 _So he really is Mikaela. Was Ferid telling the truth?_

"The rug underneath you" Ferid sighed. Mika looked around him and saw an intricate set of green wires trapping him. "You see, our enemies never intended to fight us one-on-one."

"They've caught on, Shigure" Guren smirked. "Kill them"

"Yes sir!" Shigure replied as she tugged on the wires connected to her hand, revealing the daggers on the end of each wire. Mika jumped to avoid the daggers.

"Goshi. The illusionary spell" Guren ordered. The blonde with the goatee now held a fancy pipe as smoke surrounded him.

"Already on it" He replied with a mischievous grin. The smoke chased Mika in the shape of an oval with teeth. Mika quickly dodged it, landed flawlessly on the ground, not noticing Guren's position.

Guren was quickly behind him, sword in hand. "And this is checkmate" He smirked. "Vampire-"

Suddenly, Guren's attack was blocked as Ferid jumped in just in time to save Mika from a fatal sword wound.

"There, Mika. Now you owe me one" Ferid sighed. With one hit on the cheek, Guren was sent flying. Maisie stopped what she was doing and dashed to help the lieutenant colonel. Luckily, Maisie was able to use the back of her blade to stop him before he hit a concrete wall.

"Any more and you would've been out" Maisie panted as she set him on the ground.

"Thanks" Guren said with a cough. His forehead had already begun bleeding. The two vampires approached the pair, Ferid smiling like a clown. "The silver-haired one must be a noble as well. He's way too strong"

"How could he be a noble?" Maisie asked. "He's not even a complete vampire"

Guren's face paled at Maisie's statement. _If Ferid di this much damage with one hit… How the hell are we supposed to kill him?!_

Guren checked his pocket watch, the time set at 8:10 and counting down. He put the pocket watch away and grabbed a small box of pills from his pocket.

"What are those-" Maisie asked, only to be cut off.

"None of your business" Guren snapped. He looked at the pills and smirked. "Looks like I'll have to take two pills to pull this one off."

"Don't risk it Lieutenant Colonel!" Sayuri yelled as she faced off a vampire with purple hair.

"Guren what is she talking about?" Maisie snapped. "If those things are dangerous, then don't-"

"And let everyone die?!" Guren yelled as he pushed Maisie to the side.

"Please, listen to Maisie and put the pills away!" Sayuri begged.

"If you die of shock from taking two of them, then you can't lead us!" Mito argued.

"If I don't we'll all end up dead" Guren said, using his sword to stand up. He turned to Maisie. "If I'm dead, your sister is fair game"

"I-" Maisie didn't know what to say. She rose to her feet, preparing her weapon for battle.

"The clock is ticking. We have to kill them before the pill's effects wear off" Guren ordered.

"Are you done talking yet?" Mika said harshly. "I want to get this over with"

"Well aren't you a polite vampire?" Guren teased. "Would you let us have a little more time to regroup?"

"Guren" Maisie muttered as she mentally face-palmed. _This idiot's going to get himself killed_

"How much more?" Mika asked, amusing Guren.

"Well it's time for us to take our medicine" Guren answered, holding up two fingers. "So if you could be quiet for twenty seconds or so we'd-"

Guren was interrupted as Mika and him clashed swords.

"Well, you can't blame a guy for trying" Guren grunted.

Maisie sighed. "Well, you were-"

"Hello little pet"

Maisie swung her weapon behind, almost striking Ferid where he stood. Maisie charged him, clashing weapons.

"So aggressive" Ferid complained.

"What do you want from me?!" Maisie growled. Ferid laughed.

"You know my orders" Ferid smirked.

"Yeah, to bring me with you, alive" Maisie chuckled. "Good luck with that"

"Aren't you getting a little confident?" Ferid lectured in a teasing voice.

"Not at all" Maisie smirked.

Ferid turned to the side as something caught his attention. "Oh. Looks like his back-up has arrived."

Maisie looked and saw Yu, Yoichi, Shinoa, Kimizuki, and a blonde girl she didn't recognize running towards them. _Never thought I'd be this happy to see those idiots_

"Go on, Mika" Ferid said as he sent Maisie down with one strike of his sword. Maisie quickly regained her balance and attempted another attack. "Put the poor man out of his misery"

Maisie turned to see to see Guren corned by Mika on the ground. Maisie forgot who she was fighting for a moment as she ran to Mika, just as he was about to strike Guren. Before Maisie could strike Mika, she felt a hand grab the back of her neck, restricting her airways. She instinctually dropped her weapon, changing it back to a tiny trinket, and grabbed at the hands holding her neck.

"You shouldn't turn your back while you're fighting" Ferid chuckled as his grip tightened. Maisie scratched at his hands, struggling to breath.

"Let… go… of me" Maisie choked out. Her vision began darkening.

"Maisie!" Shinoa shouted as she came running at Ferid. Ferid quickly jumped out of the way, still holding Maisie by the neck.

"Stay… back!" Maisie yelled, her voice raspy. "Help Guren!"

"Why humans prefer to die is beyond me" Ferid chuckled. "It seems they've drilled their foolish morals into your head as well"

"Shut up" Maisie growled. Ferid let go of Maisie's neck and grabbed her hair, dangling her in the air. Maisie could feel her fangs coming out as Ferid joined Mika on the battle field.

With her vision blurred, Maisie could barely make out what was happening. She could see Guren, clutching his chest as he knelt onto the ground. She could see Yu shouting at them, his eyes focused on Mika. Kimizuki, Shinoa, and Yoichi were all staring at her with worry and anger, though Yoichi looked like he knew something else. Yu walked forward to the trio, tears in his eyes.

"I'm… So sorry" Yu cried. "I abandoned you!"

"No, that's not true" Mika said with shock laced in his voice.

 _What is going on? Why isn't Yu fighting?_ Maisie wondered as her mind began coming to terms with what was happening.

"Awww. This might be the sweetest thing I've ever seen!" Ferid smiled. "And just look at how much dear Yuichiro has sprouted! What fateful and unexpected reunion for the three of us! Brings back so many memories! It's almost enough to bring tears to my eyes."- He turned to Mika- "So what's the plan? Your friend is most likely being manipulated by these humans-"

"That's not true!" Maisie shouted. Her fangs pierced her lip, no longer being obedient.

"Oh look, she has fangs" Ferid held her up so she faced her companions. "You pretended to be one of them, but blood doesn't lie"

Maisie felt tears come to her eyes as the others (Excluding Guren and Shinoa) looked at her in horror.

"Maisie" Kimizuki said, disbelief in his tone. "You're with the fangs?"

"No! Don't believe him!" Maisie screamed, struggling to escape Ferid's grasp. It was too late. She stopped trying to defend herself as she went in Ferid's grasp. Only Yoichi looked at her with pity while Kimizuki looked furious.

"Now they know the truth, I'm the only thing that's keeping them from killing you." Ferid chuckled as he turned to Mika. "Now why don't I help you rescue your princess? All you need to worry about is getting Yuichiro out of harm's way"

"But what about the girl?" Mika said, referring a defeated Maisie. Ferid quickly grabbed Maisie's neck and, before she could protest, snapped it. Maisie couldn't even scream as she was immobilized and thrown over Ferid's shoulder.

"We have some time before she can move again" Ferid smirked. Mika grabbed his sword and Ferid did the same. "Very well, it's been decided. All of the humans will die except for the long lost lamb, Yuichiro."

"Looks like I got here just in time!" Another voice joined in. Maisie caught a glimpse and recognized him right away. _It's another noble_. He was with two other female vampires Maisie didn't know. "Sorry I'm running late, third progenitor."

"Ah, Crowley. So glad you could make it to the party!" Ferid smiled.

"I took a little detour on the way over here" Crowley explained. His focus went to the girl on Ferid's shoulder. "Is that our target?"

"The very same" Ferid nodded. "Though she can't move right now"

Crowley walked Ferid and looked Maisie in the eyes. "It's been a while."

 _Not long enough_ Maisie thought as Crowley gave her a smile.

"Now that you're here, the game I had planned won't be quite as much fun" Ferid said as he sheathed his sword. "But, we could play a new one. It's called 'take them alive'. We'll capture the Moon Demon Company and make them our livestock"

"I could get behind that" Crowley agreed.

Maisie felt her blood run cold until Guren did the smartest thing he could've. He stood up and yelled "Everyone! Prepare to retreat!"

 _Thank god! Leave me and go!_ Maisie thought as she started to regain the feeling in her fingers.

"Keep your formation and retreat to the second defense line!" Guren yelled. Maisie could feel Ferid move to block the group from escaping.

"Come on, don't you wanna play?" Ferid asked with a twisted smile.

 _Please body, don't fail me!_ Maisie prayed as she lifted her tingling arm and stabbed Ferid through the chest. Ferid knelt down, causing Maisie to roll onto her feet, blood soaking her arm. The others stared at her in horror.

"Get moving!" She yelled. She was stunned as Kimizuki suddenly ran towards her, weapon in hand, and prepared to attack.

"Well this got interesting" Ferid smirked as Yu charged towards him.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Maisie yelled at Kimizuki, her legs still numb as she dodged his attack.

"Shut up! You've been pretending to be one of us from the start!" Kimizuki growled as he struck again, this time cutting her arm.

"I'm not your enemy! Please!" Maisie begged. Her focus changed Yoichi as he froze right in front of a vampire. Maisie quickly jumped over Kimizuki and pushed Yoichi out of the way just in time. Kimizuki made quick work of the vampire as Maisie helped Yoichi up.

"Well hello" Crowley's voice said as he approached the group. "So we meet again. This time, I'm not letting you get away from me"

 _Dammit. If this guy is as strong as Ferid, we're all dead_ Maisie thought as she looked at her wound. _I'm running out of blood._

Before any of them could move, Crowley quickly set his sights on Shinoa and grabbed her by the throat. Kimizuki ran towards, ready to strike as she was slammed into the ground. "Let go of her!" He yelled. Maisie saw Kimizuki was running right into a trap, but before she could try to stop him, something hit her hard in the back of her head. Usually this wouldn't affect her, but from the energy wasted battling and the blood lose, her body finally collapsed. Strong hands caught Maisie as she fell; the last image Maisie saw before her vision blurred was of Yoichi, pinned to the ground as a vampire was drinking his blood.

"Resisting is futile" An unfamiliar voice spoke into Maisie's ear as she lost consciousness.

Then there was darkness

* * *

 **Hello everyone~!**

 **I hope everyone was safe during the hurricane! I know these two chapters aren't as involving as my last chapters, but these were the harder chapters to write because I had to think of original material without disrupting everything else. The next chapter will mostly be an insight on Maisie's first few days with the vampires and a little sneak peek of what's happening on Dustin's side. After the next chapter, I'm going to take some time off, about two weeks or so, to plan out the next few chapters and then I'll get back to writing!**

 **I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello everyone! I'm back with another chapter! Now if you didn't read the author's note before this chapter, I will give you a very short summary: I was a dumbass and overworked my dominant hand to the point that it actually hurt to type. I almost got carpal tunnel. Medically, I should be in the clear for a while, but I still have a lot of pain from my wrist as a result of the entire incident. This means chapters will be written at a much slower pace.**

 **Thank you to everyone who sent me such wonderful messages and reviews! (And to guests reviewing on my story, I can't reply to you if you're a guest. Sorry!). After quite some time, this chapter is finally done! I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter Nine: Whatever it takes**

* * *

The first sense that returned to Maisie was her sense of smell. It was congested, crammed. Her lungs filled with fog, as if she were in the shower. Her hearing returned next as the sound of compressed air rang in her ears. Cold air surrounded her, giving her goosebumps. Maisie quickly realized she had no clothes on as she felt the frigid air reach places that would not be possible had she been dressed. Her whole body felt refreshed, yet sore, confusing Maisie as her memory of the previous day fell into place.

"Wake up" a commanding voice ordered. Maisie willed her eyes to open. In front of her was an older male with purple hair framing his face. His grin reminded Maisie of the kind of people her parents warned her about when she was a child. In his hands was a pile of clothes similar to his own in style. Maisie looked around her and saw she was in some kind of pod that expelled smoke. The room was round and filled with pods similar to her own. With wobbly legs, she stepped out of the pod, grabbing the vampire in front of her for stability. The vampire, unfazed, waited for her to regain her balance before handing her the clothes.

"Queen Krul is demanding your presence once her meeting is adjourned" The vampire explained. "You should hurry"

Maisie watched as he left the room, still wearing his venomous smirk. Once the door closed behind him, she released a breath she wasn't aware that she was holding. Looking at the clothes, reality began to set in. The image of her previous comrades having their blood drained haunted her mind.

 _I have my orders_ Maisie thought as she bit back the tears and began slipping on her new clothing.

The dress was fitted perfectly, almost tight fitting, showing off curves Maisie wasn't aware she had. The dress had no sleeves, the collar thin around the base of her neck, with an oval keyhole ending just above her chest. The top of the dress was white with black fabric outlining the edges and collar. From under the bust down, the dress was in a dark blue, almost black, color. The bottom half of the dress flared out slightly. Gold accents completed the dress as well as a white arm band that Maisie pulled onto her upper left arm. She wore black leggings with a white stripe on each side and a pair of black, two inch heels that went up to her ankle like a small boot.

Once clothed, Maisie stretched and caught a glimpse of her hand, surprised by the rose gold ring sitting on her ring finger. The ring made Maisie smile, as if looking at it gave her happiness. Her smile faded as her reflection looked back at her on one of the pods, her red eyes staring back at her.

 _They must have removed my contacts_ Maisie realized. _But why leave the ring?_

Maisie's thoughts plagued her as she walked out of the mysterious pod room and headed towards the queen, who she could smell from a mile away. She barely noticed how empty the hall was as she followed the queen's scent. She stopped at a particular set of red doors. Reluctantly, she opened the door, ignoring the familiar scents that accompanied the queen's. Once the doors were opened, Maisie was greeted by yelling and the sudden ripping of tile from the ground.

"-The hell you think you're doing?!" An angry female voice screamed as a large crater was carved into the ground. Maisie saw Ferid and Mikaela standing in front of what appeared to be a thirteen year old girl with long pink hair that was a few inches off the ground. "How dare you spring that video on me! And bringing Mikaela along as well. Conspire against me and I'll end you!"

"So scary. But you forget you can't kill me" Ferid teased. "After all, if I died, think about what might happen. All the information I've collected on you could leak to the Progenitor council."

The girl looked cornered. Maisie could practically feel the heat from the queen's anger.

"Besides, if they found out I let Yu escape, I'd be punished too" Ferid pointed out. "Dear, with all these shared secrets, it would appear that you and I have no other choice but to be allies. Hooray." Ferid said sarcastically as he wrapped an arm around Mika in a playful manner. Mika was unimpressed. Ferid shot a menacing smile at the young queen. "You might even say, we belong together"

Chills went down the queen's spine as a terrifying aura filled the room. Ferid's glare disappeared as quickly as it began, taking most of the tension with it as he chuckled.

"Ah, who am I kidding?" Ferid said with a laugh as he began to walk away. "What a fun game this is turning out to be" It was then that Ferid noticed Maisie, biting her tongue. "Hello, little pet. Wish I could chat, but I have some business I have to take care of"

With that, Ferid walked past Maisie with a smirk. Maisie didn't give Ferid a second glance as she debated whether to approach the queen in the state she was in. That choice was made for her as the queen's eyes shot to hers, swift and filled with anger. Maisie was caught off-guard (Something she learned usually resulted in injury) and slightly lifted her hands, as if she was prepared to get hit. Realization washed over the queen as she slightly cooled her temper.

"Your Ferid's little fledging" The queen stated. Maisie remained in her defensive position, though she gave a nod out of respect. "Mika, keep an eye on her. You'll have to give me a moment"

Maisie approached Mika, who watched as the queen slammed the doors behind her as she walked out of the room. The silence between the two persisted. Maisie, desperate for some answers, finally spoke up.

"Were you turned recently?" Maisie asked.

No response.

Maisie sighed, but persisted. "How old are you?"

Silence. Before Maisie could think of another question, Mika speaks up.

"Sixteen" Mika answered with little emotion. He looked at Maisie, as if to say _What about you?_

"Seventeen"

Mika suddenly began walking towards the doors the queen entered just as Maisie prepared another question. Maisie followed, though a little put off by his way of ending conversation, as she entered behind Mika into the elegant throne room.

The queen was sitting in the glorified chair like a little kid on take-your-child-to-work day with the most bored expression she had ever seen.

"Stand in front of me" the queen commanded. Maisie obeyed, walking to the foot of the steps while Mika took his place beside the queen. The queen's red eyes were like lasers glaring into Maisie's very being. "Do you who I am?"

Maisie remained silent, unsure of how to answer. The queen sighed.

"I am queen Krul Tempest." She explained. "And you've been an annoyance for quite some time, 'blood bird'" Maisie's facial expression remained unsure. "State your true name"

Maisie gulped. "Melissa Kennan. I prefer to go by Maisie"

"How old are you?" Krul asked, intrigued.

"Seventeen"

"Our reports say you were an incomplete vampire. That brings up two questions; when were you fully turned and how did you survive before that?"

"I was fully turned a little over a year ago" Maisie admitted. "Before that I was surviving off of animal blood"

"Interesting" Krul said with an intriguing tone. "Can you elaborate further? About animal blood."

"I wouldn't try it." Maisie chuckled. "It's very thin, coats the back of your throat like melted ice cream. It takes so much to stop the pain and even more to satisfy the hunger. The more I grew, the more I needed to drink."

"Other than the obvious, why did you stop?" Krul questioned.

Maisie could taste the bile in the back of her throat as the memories from her last few weeks with hazel eyes began to resurface. "My body wouldn't let me continue. I had done this for, at least, seven years. I began to throw up blood and bile. I tried to drink slower, but nothing helped. Then the pain hit me out of nowhere. My body felt like it was on fire. I was desperate."

 _Maisie's body felt like lead, leaving her in excruciating pain as she dragged herself along the ground, praying for something to come and relieve her. She crawled until a thick metallic scent filled her nose. The scent alone made her body pulse, making Maisie crawl into a fetal position. With all her might, she crawled with her arms to the source of the scent. When her eyes landed on the source of the blood, her heart began racing. Sitting still in the rubble was a young man in a soldier's uniform. Maisie could tell he was dead in seconds, the stab wound in his stomach being the cause._

 _Maisie's eyes began watering. "Please… not that. Please…" She found herself praying to a god she didn't think she believed in anymore._

 _ **Make the pain stop**_ _her body whispered._ _ **Make it stop**_

 _ **Make it stop**_

 _ **Make it stop**_

 _ **Make it stop**_

 _Before she could stop herself, she found that she was at the soldier's feet, her shirt absorbing his blood. Her fangs poked out at the scent of blood, real human blood. Tears ran down her face as she sent one last thought to anyone who might've been listening._

Forgive me, mom and dad. I'm sorry Hannah _She thought before she bit down on the man's leg._

"I see" Krul sighed. "Your body began growing a tolerance for animal blood, like a baby on milk. It began to reverse as you grew older, your tolerance turning into rejection. That fire you described was your body breaking itself down in an attempt to survive. If you had starved yourself any longer, you would've turned into a demon"

The thought sickened Maisie almost as much as the blood she drank. It sent chills down her spine.

"We've offered you asylum before, have we not?" Krul asked.

"I thought you would kill me." Maisie admitted. "Even now, I believe you'll just kill me. I have no information nor do I have any plans to join you"

"Even now?" Krul asked. "What else could you possibly want?"

"Something you can't give me" Maisie snapped.

"You mean that little boy?" Krul asked (no pun intended) cruelly. Maisie's face changed as her hands tightened into fists. "Oh we know all about that young man… and your little sister"

 _Who doesn't know?!_ Maisie thought, frustrated.

"Despite the army's best attempts, we are always one step ahead of them" Krul smirked. "Consider my last offer wisely. If you refuse, we can easily arrange a funeral for your baby sister" with one chuckle, Krul added "And your little boyfriend"

"I don't have a choice, do I?" Maisie asked defeated.

"Unless death is an option for you" Krul smirked at her silent response. "You will be with Mikaela, by my side when I request so. I don't trust Ferid therefore I'm not taking a risk with his creation. Any treachery and I'll torture you myself."

"Yes, your majesty" Maisie said, lowering onto her knee in submission. Krul smiled at the respect she was receiving.

"One more question before you and Mikaela are dismissed" Krul said as she rose to her feet. "While you were in a pod, unconscientious, something mysterious appeared on the ground while your body was healing. Thanks to close examination, we determined it was a bullet. Any thoughts on why a stray bullet was lodged in your body?"

"It happened when I attacked an older man, your majesty. He had a hand gun. This was several years ago." Maisie explained.

"Makes sense. It was your body's first proper healing. Very well. You are both dismissed" Krul said as she walked off. Maisie and Mika both left the throne room, Maisie refusing to make eye contact. As the door closed behind them, Maisie let out a chuckle.

"She's very cruel" Maisie chuckled. Mika looked at her confused.

"What do you-"

"One bullet doesn't do it. It'll only piss them off" She looked at Mika with a pitiful expression. "Or get you a nasty headache. Trust me, I've tried."

Maisie quickly walked off, ignoring Mika as she searched for somewhere, anywhere, she couldn't be seen. _My comrades died thinking I was a monster, and now I'm stuck in hell_

…

"Did you know?" Yu asked, having just woken up from his week-long coma. "About Melissa."

The room went silent as Yoichi, Kimizuki, Yu, and Mitzu all stared at Shinoa, their leader.

Shinoa gulped before she answered. "Yes, I did"

"Why didn't you tell us?!" Kimizuki snapped.

"Because she wasn't a threat" Shinoa shot back.

"Not a threat?!" Mitzu questioned. "What the hell does that mean?!"

"We held something against her" Shinoa spit out. "She couldn't betray us even if she wanted to"

"What was it?" Yoichi asked, nervously.

"Her little sister… and her best friend"

"Are they-" Yoichi cut off his sentence.

"No, they're both human" Shinoa clarified. "But only one of them knew who she really was"

"I already knew" Yoichi admitted.

"H-how?!" Shinoa asked, dumbfounded.

"My demon told me. He warned me" Yoichi said with a nervous chuckle.

" _Looks like the humans have a trump card. No matter, I'll start with the others!"_

 _Now it makes sense_ Shinoa sighed. _Leave it to Yoichi to find out_

"Is something wrong?" Yoichi asked.

"Nothing" Shinoa sighed.

"Wait, what do you mean by 'who'? Don't you mean 'what'?" Kimizuki asked.

"No, I meant what I said" Shinoa corrected. "She was using a fake name, though not a clever one."

"What's her real name?" Yoichi asked.

"Melissa Kennan, though her preferred name was Maisie" Shinoa explained. "She was first turned eight years ago when she was nine-years-old. Her parents were killed while her sister, still a baby, survived"

"How did a baby survive the apocalypse? The blood suckers would've taken her" Mitzu snapped.

Shinoa gave Mitzu an unsettling look before answering. "Maisie hid her sister under a bed before she was attacked herself. Her little sister was later found by officers that took her into a survivor's compound"

Yoichi looked uncomfortable at this statement. His unspoken question reached Shinoa, who answered without even flinching.

"Yes, Yoichi, just like you… and your sister. Maisie was apparently turned a few days later, injured badly but alive." Shinoa didn't look at Yoichi as she cleared her throat. "The military thought she was dead until five years ago a group of kids was found in front of city lines. We thought nothing of it until one year later we received a boy who claimed a vampire called the 'blood bird' was rescuing people from the vampires."

"I remember that case. My squadron was told to keep an eye out for her a few years ago" Mitzu recalled. "It was a really big deal at the time"

"It was. Maisie stumped the military for at least five years before we finally caught her" Shinoa bit her tongue.

"You used her family against her, didn't you" Yu asked. Shinoa's silence gave his response.

"She wasn't hostile to people. We needed an advantage" Shinoa finally responded.

"That doesn't make it right, dammit!" Yu snapped.

"Why the change of heart, Yu?" Shinoa questioned. "I thought you hated vampires"

Yu growled as he turned his head, recalling his current predicament with Mika.

"We'll get them back, Yu" Yoichi assured.

"We better"

…

"Hey Mr. Dustin?" Hannah asked, swinging her feet while she sat at the table, her homework in front of her.

"It's Dusty" Dusty clarified as he emptied some new shop items for his pawn shop from their shipping boxes.

"Dusty, are you and my sister married?" Hannah asked sweetly.

Dusty immediately turned red, feeling his blood pressure sky rocket. He quickly caught the vase he was unpacking before he dropped it. "Why in hell's-"

"That's a bad word"

"Sorry, why would you think we're married?" Dusty asked as he calmed down from his sudden shock.

"You share a house-"

"We're just roommates" Dusty denied.

"-You sleep in the same bed-"

"That's a space issue" Dusty interrupted, turning a little pink at that question.

"-And you put a ring on her finger" That last one made Dusty's face turn four shades redder than humanly possible.

"We're just friends" Dusty growled.

"But she likes you too!" Hannah said. Dusty froze and looked at Hannah.

"Really?"

"I think so" Hannah smiled. "So why don't you marry her?"

Dusty's eyes lit up until reality set in. "I wish, but I can't"

"Why not?"

"It's complicated"

"What's so complicated?" Hannah asked. "Just tell her you really like her"

"It sounds easy, but it's not" Dusty explained with a sad chuckle. "Trust me, if I could, I would marry your sister on the spot"

"And I could be a bridesmaid!" Hannah laughed.

"That's right" Dusty laughed. "If things were different, I would. Maisie means the world to me"

"She does?"

"Yep. Heck, she is my world." Dusty took a deep breath as he let the fantasy float away. He looked at Hannah with a smirk. "How about I make some lunch?"

Hannah returned the grin. "Yes please!"

 _How did I become such a hopeless romantic?_


	10. I'm Back!

**I'm back!**

 **Oh boy, it's been a minute. I haven't updated since March-ish, I'm really sorry guys. For anyone wondering, my friend is in a much better state of mind and I have been doing wonderfully as well. As a present for being SUPER patient with me for the past three months, I'm going to reveal some things that have been under wraps for a few months now!**

 **One: I've started writing again! The newest chapter of Shelter is under construction and will be up as soon as possible!**

 **Two: Before I went on a hiatus, I was also working on some super secret projects and testing some possible plots for a future stories. A few I'm testing out and possibly considering for the future involve shows such as Fullmetal Alchemist or My Hero Academia, but those are currently in the testing phase right now, so it's not set in stone.**

 **Three: One story that I will DEFINITELY be doing (And one that I have been planning for a while now) is a Fairy Tail fanfic! (I just finished the planning stage and am finishing up the first chapter)**

 **Four: If I get enough questions, I might be doing a Q &A after the next chapter. Send any questions you have my way (Tho I won't be giving spoilers)!**

 **That's about all the news I have to share! Thanks for being so patient with me, you guys are amazing and I'm glad to be back!**

 **P.S. If anyone is interested in drawing the cover image for Shelter, go for it! Can't give you money, but I will give you credit and any appropriate links you want (Devianart page, fanfic profile, etc.) on my bio and on the first chapter and will stay there, even if I changed my mind. Just private message me and we'll work something out. Everyone have an awesome day! :)**

 **\- XxWhispxX**


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